PAUL COOK, ABC GREAT SOUTHERN PRESENTER: 7.44, good news for you as youth mental health service, headspace, which was set up back in 2006 under the guidance of Dr Patrick McGorry, has a mission, and its mission is going to be coming to a town in the South West. The mission is to provide a wraparound mental health support services for young people 12 to 25. It's funded by the Federal Government and now has 163 outlets across the country. And the news is today that Manjimup will be the host of the 164th headspace. It's a region that for years has grappled with growing mental health issues with young people and a lack of services. It's even prompted the community to set up the Blackwood Youth Action Group just a few years ago.
Today, Emma McBride, the Assistant Minister for Mental Health, Suicide Prevention and Rural and Regional Health, is in the South West to make the announcement and joins me on the programme this morning. Good morning to you, Minister.
ASSISTANT MINISTER EMMA MCBRIDE: Good to be with you, Paul.
COOK: Thanks for being part of the program. I guess first question is, why Manjimup? Because there would be plenty of towns who would have put their hand up for this kind of support.
MCBRIDE: There is, Paul, increasing demand for mental health services for young people right around the country, including in Western Australia. We've seen a big surge in demand since headspace was first developed all those years ago. Nationally, around 40 per cent of young people have expressed distress in the last 12 months, and that's why our government is strengthening the headspace and expanding the headspace network right around the country, including in Western Australia. There's currently 21 headspace centres across the state, and now I'm really pleased to announce that Manjimup will be now a new centre for youth mental health support and care in the South West.
COOK: I read that, in a former life, you were a specialist mental health pharmacist. Now, what has that background taught you about mental health and the support that's needed in remote areas of the country?
MCBRIDE: I am a pharmacist and I worked as a specialist mental health pharmacist in acute adult inpatient units. And what that taught me is that we need support that's accessible in the community earlier in life, so that young people don't end up in distress or crisis and needing those more acute services. We know with earlier intervention that the impact and duration of mental ill health can be reduced significantly and young people can go on to thrive. And that's why it's so important to strengthen and expand the headspace network. I also know, as a young person who grew up in a regional community, how difficult it can be for young people, their parents, and those who care about them to access services close to home, which was why we're expanding the headspace network to bring those mental health support services closer to young people wherever they live.
COOK: When will the service in Manjimup open?
MCBRIDE: Commissioning of a typical headspace service takes about 18 months because it's a very thorough process, working with the community in co-design and working with existing services to make sure that they're properly integrated, and that they're strong collaboration. So the service is likely to be up and running next year, and we're really pleased to see this- to be able to announce today the location and for that work on the co-design to start. And also, a local youth reference group will be set up, and that means that young people here will be able to have a direct say in the type of service that they want and that they need, and that will be provided to them in the very near future.
COOK: I'm speaking to the Assistant Minister for Mental Health, Suicide Prevention and Rural and Regional Health, Emma McBride, on the program this morning. We're talking about the announcement of the 164th headspace in Manjimup, which supports young people 12 to 25. The question is also, what will the Manjimup service look like, Assistant Minister? For example, will they have access to all the services that they would do in a larger- whether it's a provincial or metropolitan area, such as psychologists and counsellors?
MCBRIDE: Yes. And we've made sure through an additional investment of close to $27 million in the recent Budget to make sure to expand the headspace early careers program, and that means that we're supporting expanding the headspace workforce at the same time as providing more targeted services for young people, particularly those specialist services provided by psychologist and psychiatrists. headspace centres provide mental health care related physical and sexual health support, vocational services, and alcohol and other drug support for young people experiencing substance use concern or misuse. So full wraparound services and all of the components that young people would need and should be able to access will be provided here in Manjimup, as they would be elsewhere in Western Australia or around the country.
COOK: Is there ever enough funding for these services? Because the 164th headspace in Manjimup, we know that mental health in rural and regional areas is a growing concern, ever growing concern. Suicide rates in regional Western Australia – the percentages are both sad and awakening to the need for these health services. Could more be done?
MCBRIDE: Always there is more that can be done to support young people and their families, particularly those 7 million Australians living outside of our capital cities, which is why almost 90 of these headspace services are located in regional Australia, and which is why we're strengthening the network by boosting the headspace early career program to grow and expand the workforce, and we're also expanding the footprint of headspace. This year alone, the Government is investing more than $320 million in the headspace program. The commissioning of the Manjimup centre will be an investment of just over $1 million, and then there'll be ongoing operational investment and resources provided for that centre. And the Manjimup centre, because of the need and demand in the local community, it will already be set up as an enhanced headspace. So there'll be additional funding from the get go to make sure that this service can quickly meet the needs of local young people and their families.
COOK: Speaking with the Federal Assistant Minister for Mental Health, Suicide Prevention and Rural and Regional Health, Emma McBride, on this program this morning. What role does telehealth play in this service, Assistant Minister?
MCBRIDE: Telehealth is absolutely vital. And we've seen in the eastern states, particularly through COVID-19, a big uptake in telehealth support. It can bring specialist support and care to a centre, to a living room, to a safe place where someone feels at ease and familiar. And e-space- sorry, headspace has a national eheadspace program, which young people can access through calling 1800-065-890 or visiting www.headspace.org.au. That's already available to young people in Western Australia and in Manjimup. But it is a really important component also for young people who prefer online or digital support. There are some people that find that the way that they would like to connect with and access services. So it's an important component that we have running alongside the face-to-face bricks and mortar services.
COOK: Is that the service that young people are using? Let's say they're in Manjimup at the moment – are they going to telehealth? Where are they being directed currently?
MCBRIDE: So at the moment, if a young person was seeking headspace support, then yes, they might be then referred to eheadspace or connected through outreach to an existing headspace. In the South West at the moment, there's headspace centres operating in Bunbury, Busselton, Margaret River, and Albany. So it could either be through a virtual service or through outreach from one of the existing headspace centres within the South West.
COOK: Assistant Minister for Mental Health, Suicide Prevention, and Rural and Regional Health, Emma McBride, thank you. I appreciate your time this morning.
MCBRIDE: Been good talking with you, Paul.
COOK: That is news today that Manjimup is going to host the 164th headspace. About 18 months away, according to the Assistant Minister there, before it's opened. But that is good news, certainly for young people 12 to 25 in Manjimup. And I know that certainly in other regions, in Albany and Margaret River where they do have those services, they are well utilised.
It’s 7.53. If any of these topics have an effect on you, Lifeline, 13-11-14, or Beyond Blue, 1300-22-46-36.