More mental health crisis support will soon be available in Southland with Te Whatu Ora Southern confirming Ngā Kete Mātauranga Pounamu Charitable Trust (Ngā Kete) as the provider of a new mental health crisis support service in Invercargill.
Ngā Kete is a mana whenua mandated kaupapa Māori provider and has been offering mental health and addiction services in the south for more than 20 years. It is also home to the Low-Cost Access GP Service He Puna Waiora Wellness Centre, the He Puna Waiora Wellness Pharmacy, as well as a range of social and health services.
“The need to expand the range of crisis response options across the Southern region was identified in the 2021 Time for Change – Te Hurihanga review*, and I’m delighted that this new service will soon be available,” says Te Whatu Ora Southern Interim Lead Hospital and Specialist Services, Hamish Brown.
“It will be able to provide more options for tāngata whaiora (those seeking wellbeing) in Southland needing crisis support either at home, or in short term respite care.”
The service called Tūmanako Oranga will sit alongside the current 24/7 regional crisis response service. It is expected to start in October 2023 and will be scaled up in stages. The first stage will provide outreach support to tāngata whaiora and whānau. The second stage, expected to be operational by January 2024, will provide 24-hour support services including outreach and crisis respite beds available for short–term respite care. The rollout of this service is being supported by Budget 2022 funding, which will see a number of new and enhanced community-based crisis services around the country receive a share of $27.45 million over four years.
The service will be available for people aged 18 and over, and the referral process to access the service is currently being worked through to ensure tāngata whaiora can easily access the support they need.
Ngā Kete also offers a wide hub of connected services that tāngata whaiora can be linked into to address their needs.
As well as providing mental health crisis support, Tūmanako Oranga Community based service will also provide education and support for whānau and carers.
Ngā Kete Chief Executive Tracey Wright-Tawha says this will be as part of a coordinated service in an all-purpose facility Ngā Kete are establishing in Invercargill. “We will offer respite care, a day programme, access to experiential learning, mental health and addiction counselling, community advocacy and support and community withdrawal support care, including wider access to our full range of services e.g., Whānau Ora, budgeting, general practice, disability, stop smoking support and so forth. Our model of work is highly relational, and I’m excited at the calibre of my working team to diligently provide these services. Equitable service delivery at the flax roots, where people live, work and play.”
“We’re pleased to have Ngā Kete as Te Whatu Ora’s new provider, and we look forward to working closely with them in providing this new service for our Southern community,” says Mr Brown.
*Time for Change – Te Hurihanga isa focused project led by the Te Whatu Ora Southern to address health, equity, location, social and systemic issues and put people at the centre of care. It’s part of the direction to transform Aotearoa’s mental health and addiction system over the next 10 years outlined in Kia Manawanui Aotearoa
More information about the Time for Change – Te Hurihanga programme and review is available at www.southernhealth.co.nz/timeforchange
Photo caption - Left to right: Ngā Kete Practitioner/Kaumatua, Matua Tira Ririnui; Ngā Kete Tūmanako Wellbeing Site Manager, Kerstin Kummerer; Te Whatu Ora Southern Nurse Consultant, Mental Health Addiction and Intellectual Disability (MHAID) Jane Bodkin; Ngā Kete Tumu Whakarae/CEO , Tracey Wright-Tawha; Te Whatu Ora Southern Allied Health Director, MHAID, Adell Cox and Te Whatu Ora Southern Pou Whirinaki - Māori Equity Lead, MHAID, Daniel Tawaroa
