Government was supposed to complete their review of
the five-year old youth mental health report on January 9th,
yet Health Minister Ross Wiseman still has not provided any update on the
process, says Opposition Leader Yvonne Jones. Jones is calling for an
update on government’s planned actions to address youth mental health
services in the province.
“This is an issue that will not go away anytime
soon and government must outline their action plan to deal with the
short-term and long-term issues related to youth mental health in our
province,” said Ms. Jones. “Minister Wiseman has been aware of the
problems in this system for several months and has yet to bring forward
any initiatives or updates. The problems that were presented to the public
in December have not changed and these children and their parents are
still waiting for help and answers.”
Jones says government should bring forward short-term
financial measures that will allow young people suffering from mental
illness to access facilities outside the province and ensure the
appropriate supports, programs and services are immediately made available
to all children, youth and their families. Jones also believes the 2003
youth mental health report that was shelved for the past five years should
be implemented and a residential treatment facility and programs be
established that will provide long-term help to mentally ill youth within
the province.
“Minister Wiseman stated that a review of the 2003
report would be conducted by three top-level officials in his
department and completed by January 9th. He said he would
review it and decide what action would be taken to address the issues
identified. It has been almost three weeks since that deadline and no
update has been forthcoming. The time for the minister’s rhetoric has passed and
immediate action is required. While the province drags its feet on this
issue, young people continue to fall through the cracks of our mental
health system.”
