Do you have family who use or have used Mental Health Services? We want to hear from you!

Southern DHB’s Mental Health, Addictions and Intellectual Disabilities (MHAID) team want to improve services across the district and want to hear from the whānau of people who use or have used services.    

Two programmes of particular interest are Needs Assessment, and the Day Activities and Vocational programmes, though other community-based services and programmes will also be reviewed over the next few years.

“We’re working to improve how we deliver services and whānau have important views and insights that need to be heard,” says Robert Ford, MHAID relationship manager.

“We want to know what works, what doesn’t, and how we can better meet the needs of the communities we serve.”

Robert says families and whānau in the Southern district may face challenges different than elsewhere in the country because of the geographic size of the district and mix of rural and urban populations, so it is important that residents reach out and tell their unique stories.

Anyone wishing to make a submission can email Southern DHB family advisors Sharon Morrison (sharon.morrison@southerndhb.govt.nz) in Southland or Maryse Stanton (maryse.stanton@southerndhb.govt.nz) in Otago or write to Family Advisors, Mental Health Addictions and Intellectual Disabilities Directorate, Southern DHB, Box 828, Invercargill, or Box 1921, Dunedin.