The Australian College of Mental Health Nurses (ACMHN) welcomes the Albanese Government's $1 billion commitment to expand mental health services while highlighting the need for a strong mental health nursing workforce to deliver these promises.
This significant commitment acknowledges the critical importance of accessible mental health care and addresses several longstanding gaps in the current system.
"We are particularly encouraged by the focus on the growing number of young Australians with complex mental health needs who too often fall through the cracks of Australian mental healthcare systems," said Professor Rhonda Wilson, President of the ACMHN. "20 Youth Specialist Care Centres represent a vital step toward ensuring young people with conditions such as personality disorders, eating disorders, and early psychosis can access and navigate the intensive support they need at a time and place they most need it. We emphasise the importance of enabling mental health nurses to work to the full scope of their practice in these centres to ensure the safe delivery of mental health care to Australian young people."
The ACMHN strongly supports the government's commitment to workforce development, including funding for 1,200 training places for mental health professionals and peer workers. However, we emphasise that mental health nurses must be central to this workforce planning through strengthening post graduate mental health nursing education for registered nurses.
"Over 26,700 Australian mental health nurses are the foundation of our mental health system, providing 24/7 mental health care across all settings from community centres to acute inpatient units," said Professor Wilson. "Any successful implementation of these new services will depend heavily on the inclusion of a highly educated, clinically expert, and well-supported mental health nursing workforce."
The College calls on the government to ensure mental health nurses are:
- Specifically and proportionately included in the 1,200 funded training positions
- Represented in leadership, planning and expert clinical roles at the new Medicare Mental Health Centres and Youth Specialist Care Centres
- Provided with clear career pathways and opportunities for advanced mental health nursing practice roles
"We applaud the government's focus on free, accessible care through Medicare, which aligns with our priorities to foster quality fundamental mental health support availability for all Australians regardless of their financial circumstances," Professor Wilson said. "However, this vision can only be realised with an appropriate workforce mix that recognises the unique expert contribution of mental health nurses."
The ACMHN looks forward to working collaboratively with the government to ensure this significant investment achieves its intended outcomes and creates lasting improvements to Australia's mental health system.
For crisis support, please contact:
Open Arms—Veterans & Families Counselling 1800 011 046 | www.OpenArms.gov.au
Safe Zone Support 1800 142 072
Lifeline 13 11 14 | www.lifeline.org.au/crisis-chat
1800RESPECT 1800 737 732 | Text 0458 737 732
Beyond Blue 1300 224 636
Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800 | kidshelpline.com.au
Contact details:
For further comment, please contact ACMHN Media, on: (02) 6285 1078 or email [email protected].
