Wednesday, 19 February 2020

Euroa electorate mental health services

Ms RYAN: Last week I attended the Connect Benalla suicide prevention network community meeting. Community members have done a power of work in the prevention space, but Benalla and other communities in my electorate, including Kilmore, are still experiencing a critical shortage of intervention services. Just last week I had a conversation with a mother who is distraught because her daughter is suffering anxiety and depression and she cannot get the help that she needs. Last month I spoke to a mother who was on the verge of having to close her business because the only place her son can access help when he is suicidal is in Box Hill, and once he is discharged there are no services to support him, and so the cycle repeats.

Until the Andrews government acknowledges the findings of the Auditor-General that Victoria has the lowest funding per capita of any state in Australia and addresses critical workforce shortages, nothing will change.