Help for when mental health system fails

People who have had problems with Victoria's mental health system have finally been  given a voice. The state's first Mental Health Complaints Commissioner is part of a long-awaited update of the state's antiquated laws.  

By DIANA HODGETTS

Victoria’s antiquated mental health system is finally getting a long awaited overhaul with the introduction of a Mental Health Complaints Commission.

Before the new Mental Health Act came into effect in July, Victoria had some of the oldest mental health legislation in the world.

The previous act, dating from 1986, was at odds with the state's Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act, as well as UN conventions on the rights of children and people with disabilities.

Part of the commission's role is to work with mental health service providers to develop practices and policies in response to issues highlighted by complainants.  The role is independent of the Government and the Health Department.

Commissioner Lynne Coulson Barr, who is a specialist in the area of complaint and dispute resolution, said that although it was early days, service providers had been quite receptive.

“On the more macro level, we've seen positive responses from services,” she said. “There's an interest in using the data to make improvements to policy.”

Ms Coulson Barr said the commission was established in response to one of the key recommendations to come out of an extensive public consultation process, which received more than 200 submissions. The commission's establishment committee is also working with the industry and community to improve safeguards and oversight to protect the welfare of people accessing mental health services.

Two months into the new role, Ms Coulson Barr said it was too early to comment on how many complaints she had received, but said people came forward for a variety of reasons, some simply wanting an apology.

“A very common motivation is to prevent the same thing from happening to other people,” she said.

Ms Coulson Barr said she was focused on increasing the visibility and accessibility of the new organisation.

“People can contact us by email, Facebook and by phone,” she said.

“Once they've contacted us, we aim to respond quickly and understand the situation from their perspective.”

The commission can receive complaints from people accessing or trying to access mental health services and anyone who is acting on their behalf or has a genuine interest in their wellbeing.

Once they have received a complaint, they can respond in a number of ways.

The commission can act as a mediator between the complainant and the service provider, conduct investigations and issue compliance notices where appropriate. It will also advise service providers on best practices to accommodate the new legislation.

The changes are intended to protect the rights of consumers and provide better mental health services to Victorians.

Ms Coulson Barr was previously deputy commissioner with Victorian Disability Services, after helping to to establish the office in 2007.

She is enrolled in the Doctor of Juridical Science  at Monash University in the area of dispute resolution, particularly for people with disabilities, and was last year awarded a US fellowship  to study alternative dispute resolution practices, one of only 12 people selected from around the world.