On Thursday 11 August 2011, both Keiran Booth and myself (Warren Jenkins) attended  a Forum, conducted by the Mental Health Council Australia (MHCA), as part of a discussion of how to implement some of the federal government’s new budget initiatives for mental health.
The  Background paper (download below) , sets out the proposal for increased coordinated care for people living in the community with complex care needs.

In brief the paper and proposal sets out  –

1. $549 million will be spent over 5 years
2. This will target the top 24,000 people experiencing severe mental illness
3. An open tender process will be established per region (in the first part of 2012)
4. This will be achieved by the establishment of Care Facilitators
5. Already funded federal programs such as PHAMS will be well placed for this funding
6. Effective partnerships across a range of service providers will be essential.

The forum was attended by approximately 60 people, a number representing larger welfare providers such as Anglicare, Salvos and Catholic Social Services, as well as specific mental health organizations such as MIFA, Mind Australia and ourselves.

Download:
Background Paper Coordinated Care Measure - MHCA forum.doc
Discussion Paper Flexible Care Packages .pdf