Tuesday, 19 March 2024

Gippsland East electorate mental health services

Tim BULL (Gippsland East) (16:18): There are a number of people in the Bairnsdale and Orbost communities that want to know where their promised mental health hubs are. This has a very interesting history, because it was initially announced when these hubs were to be established that Bairnsdale and Orbost would be established in the middle of the year 2023 – by June–July 2023. Obviously that did not occur. Then in September we had a media release come out from the government office saying that the Bairnsdale facility was open. This was published in the Bairnsdale Advertiser. This was on 3TR radio – that the service was open. I got a copy of the media release.

In the coming days we soon realised there was no service open in Bairnsdale whatsoever. A statement came out from the minister’s office saying an error had been made, but it said that these facilities would be open by Christmas – they would be opening by December. Well, December has come and gone; we have no mental health hubs. We are now approaching April; we have no mental health hubs. I have asked repeatedly when these will be delivered. I specifically asked that these services have outreach capacity to reach those communities around Bairnsdale and Orbost. I have been advised that will be provided. But I would like to know, and the community would like to know, when these hubs will be delivered with their essential outreach services.