Yes there is much wrong with the mental health system. This has always been the case.

Mental health is portrayed as being the responsibility of Health. This I beleive is very wrong. The issues surrounding mental health goes beyond health and into many other areas.

Health is seen as being the sole provider for the mentally ill.

The presence of so many mentally ill on the streets and in prisons is not only caused by lack of medical services.

In fact it is impossible for any health services to be of value while the mentally ill have no housing or employment to benefit from medical treatment.

The families of these people also suffer from lack of servies, especially the children.

So Mr Abbott, you can throw your hands up in horror and say that state mental health servies are to blame. Does he realise that mental health services could be of more benefit and give service to more if they where only responsible for medical treatment.

If they responsibilty for housing, education, training,employment,
legal aid and family support for the mentally ill were met by the revalent departments, both Federally and State, better outcomes maybe achieved.

If Mr Abbott really understood or cared. he is in a wonderful position to lead and bring change to people when they need that extra support to survive.

Australia's National Mental Health Service is in urgent need of structural reforms, especially in funding areas for community enterprising services.

Ministers and leaders at all levels have failed to acknowledge that the crisis in mental health servicing is the result of poor recognition of progressive "economic health policy" in planning for social sustainable development.

It appears there is a broad number of sociological problems in human development, where the sociological expedience for mental health, is systematically under-developed.

This has led to an increase in 'quasi" diagnosing, an escalation in de facto psychiatric institutions, where a diversity of "structural" problems plague Australia's mental health services, revealing that stigma against people affected by mental illness, where discrimination, is also systemic.

It is appalling in such a self-proclaimed successful country as Australia, to find; "The needs of people affected by mental illness are disregarded at the highest political levels where policies are set and funding decisions are made within health bureaucracies. These bureaucracies regularly give such people the lowest priority."

Rehabilitation and support programs are urgently required to help prevent "mental illness" by attending to the social disruptions that only add to an increase in "mental illness" process of making new assessments. This is because these assessment relieve politicians of "the social burden" by displacing the actual 'blame for the consequences of poor service delivery, onto the mentally ill themselves'.

In Australia, we urgently need "legislative change at federal and state levels to outlaw vilification and harassment" of people with a psychological, psychiatric, and enforced disabilities, which add to the disruptions caused by the strain of related social problems.

As Rainer said, "When contact is made its usually in reaction mode to the situation and issues - moreover, issues relating to the cultural competency of these services often impedes good prognosis and help."

That as with other sociao-economic and cultural-political areas; "health and community care we once again find ourselves captured in-between the State and Federal governments fighting over dollars and responsibility.

Integrated structural reforms in Mental Health across Australia; "is an urgent matter that requires urgent bi-partisan support and heaps of funding".

Thanks to you as well Paul Morgan for writing such an insightful article. I wasn't aware that so many others felt the same. Wendy - have you ever wondered why youngsters turn to drugs? Has it ever occurred to you that the reason is that those who are predisposed to mental illness are predisposed to compulsive behaviour? Has it ever occurred to you that those anxious feelings that have these youngsters closing down are so unbearable that they seek relief in substance abuse? Has it ever occurred to you that their parents and family pay taxes too and deserve fairer treatment? We have ramps and car spaces for the physically disabled; but the mentally disabled usually have nothing but whisperings and cold, heartless stares. Be nice.

Just a couple of points,
1. Tank you Paul for your accurate assesment of the situation, a very good piece, which cover the whole issue.
2. Those who are blaming Wendy, please go back and look at her contribution, and you will see she posted it for Kerry Davis, who obviously has no compassion for the mentally ill, and whose main concern is the almighty dollar.
3. Those who critisise Tony Abbott, Federal Health Minister, should know that he along with his boss {Abbott/Howard team} cut Fereral Funding in Health last year to the States by nearly $1 billion dollars over 5 years in the Federal/State funding Agreement, so it is demonstrable how much Tony Abbott care about the average Australian's health in general, and to asign this aspect of health to his Parliamentry Secretery, mental health in particular.
4. It's time the stigma was removed I haven't noticed any change in community opinion since Jeff Kennett accepted the highly paid job, with the clayton's organision Beyond Blue, Kennett is just another social elite akin to Abbot/Howard and don't really care what happens to mentally ill people as demonstrated by last year's cuts in funding to the States, where was Kennett then?

Wendy- sorry I misunderstood. Thanks shonga for giving me the drum. Kerry, No one should suffer assault in the course of their business. I still stand by my earlier comment, however, I think, I know how angry and disempowered you must feel.
My daughter was bashed by a person who is mentally ill. We took him into our home and gave him shelter when he was couch surfing and living on the streets. I went out of my way to get him re-signed with Centrelink (he had spent 8 months witout income because he just could not in his mental state negotiate the system). Note: Centerlink didnt offer to reimburse him. The hospital doctor wrote up a report for her and the nurses suggested she press charges. The police contacted my daughter and took her statment. We rang the police a few months later to see what was going on, as my daughter had decided to leave it go. The police said that it was never going to proceed anyway. It is a difficult situation as we still love him - he has many endearing qualites - what is one to do?