BENDIGO Community Health Services has been awarded a leading role in the provision of the region’s primary mental health services.
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The organisation was this week announced as one of 11 preferred mental health service providers to share in $4.8 million of federal funding.
The preferred providers will partner with a number of health services, mental health alliances and general practitioners to provide community-based mental health services.
Bendigo and District Aboriginal Co-operative, headspace Bendigo, Bendigo Primary Care Centre and the Victorian AIDS Council will partner with BCHS.
BCHS chief executive Kim Sykes said the partnerships formalised some existing working relationships.
“It really helps us build a strongly collaborative approach,” she said.
She said the arrangement would encourage the organisations to learn from each other, to identify and address gaps in services, and to further complement the tertiary mental health services provided by Bendigo Health.
A portion of the funding the organisations receive will be used to build the capacity of the system.
This is the first year federal funding has been distributed to mental health services through Primary Health Networks.
Funding was awarded based on a bidding process.
The region’s Primary Health Network, Murray PHN, evaluated submissions based on factors such as local knowledge and strong GP engagement.
There were 29 applicants in our region.
Murray PHN executive director integration, Penny Wilkinson, said the principle of stepped care was at the heart of the new arrangement.
“The system needs to be able to escalate or deescalate care based on individual needs,” she said.
“I am excited about the change and opportunity that will accompany our implementation of stepped care in the region.”
The new contracts are effective for about 15 months from March 1.
“Change is disruptive so we will be working to support our current providers as we work towards our future providers,” Ms Wilkinson said.
MIND, Northern District Community Health, Cobaw Community Health Service, and Echuca Regional Health are among the other preferred providers in the Murray PHN region.
Partnering organisations include Castlemaine District Community Health, Inglewood and Districts Health Service, and East Wimmera Health Service.