During March 2023 we are conducting a series of three design workshops, with attendees from across the Mental Health and Addiction sector. These will help define service user pathways, refine the proposed functions and operating model, and incorporate evaluation and service user feedback as success indicators. The resulting proposal will be shared for consultation in April. We will continue to seek kaimahi and stakeholder feedback at each step of the process.
No, you are not too late! This is a concept paper only, and there will be more opportunities to contribute to the next stage, which is the more detailed implementation plan. In the meantime, please continue to send your feedback to mhachange@ccdhb.org.nz.
I don’t think this concept goes far enough, what can I do?
We have taken what you have said so far and tried to capture this in the concept design. As we are only in the concept phase, there is time to tell us what you think. This is your opportunity to give feedback and offer ideas about things that we might have missed.
How will this affect me?
Will the changes require me to change the focus of my role?
For some kaimahi, yes there are likely to be changes to your focus. Any changes will be explored with you once the proposal moves from concept to proposal. We are committed to working with staff who are identified as being affected/impacted once the proposal is finalised.
Are any jobs at risk as part of these changes?
No, it is not envisioned that staff will lose their jobs. The changes being implemented aim to increase the capacity of our system by using the available resources of people and funding in better ways. We also want to provide the opportunity for staff to specialise in certain areas (e.g., advanced therapies) and work at the top of their scope.
Will I need to reapply for my job?
At this stage no, however we will be working closely with staff, the unions and HR to support staff identified as affected or whose roles are significantly changed to ensure that we follow a clear and supportive process. We are acutely aware of the significant workforce shortages and do not want to add to this.
Will I need to re-locate?
For some staff there may be changes in where your work base is located. For many this may be a positive change, and for others the highly mobile nature of the proposed new service delivery model will have some appeal. Throughout the process we will work with all stakeholders to minimise any impacts on you and your role, but at the same time ensuring we improve the system for people with mental health and addiction needs.
How will this impact sector staff? Will I have to work in a different location?
At this stage, the proposed changes are conceptual only. We will be consulting on a more detailed plan next year, which will take into account feedback gathered in this round. This includes details such as changes to jobs.
Throughout the process we will work with all stakeholders to minimise any impacts on you and your role, but at the same time ensuring we improve the system for people with mental health and addiction needs.
I don't understand how this relates to my job.
For the majority of kaimahi working across the mental health and addiction sector, this will not directly affect your job, especially at this conceptual stage. It reflects a move towards a more integrated mental health and addiction system, and how different organisations across the sector will work together. You will start to see how this looks for you more clearly over the coming months.
We are looking at all options to meet the needs of people using services across the district. Although we are not currently proposing any specific changes to operating hours, increasing the availability of specific services outside of usual business hours is something that has been raised in the past. Any potential extension to operating hours would not necessarily mean individual staff working longer hours.
We are interested in what staff and stakeholders think about the option to change the operating hours of our services. Specifically, how this might look, and the benefits and risks the project needs to consider before a decision is made. These discussions will be completed in full consultation with key stakeholders as part of the design process and an outcome will be outlined in the proposal released in April.
Trust needs to be rebuilt within our organisation, so that our workforce can feel secure and supported. Will future iterations of the plan contain a plan for rebuilding this relationship?
During the initial work on shaping the concept, we had several discussions about our internal organisational culture and how this will need to align with the concepts we propose. Strengthening our organisational culture has been an ongoing theme in the feedback, and we plan to pick this up in the more detailed implementation planning so that it is incorporated into the final design of our services. More detail on this will be released in due course.
How will this affect tāngata whaiora?
How will my care change? Will I be able to access services in different locations?
At this stage, the proposed changes are conceptual only. We will be consulting on a more detailed plan next year, which will take into account feedback gathered in this round. This level of detail has therefore not yet been worked through.
However, in general, we aim to offer people more flexibility about care they receive, and so there will likely be more location options for people around where care is delivered.
How will you ensure any developments are client/person-focused?
In drafting the local concept paper, we sought feedback from community lived experience stakeholders, the MHAIDS Lived Experience team, and the Lived Experience Advisory Group who reviewed the paper and fed back specifically around ensuring that the views of people with lived experience were strengthened in the proposed model of care.
We are clear that people with lived experience will continue to be involved in service design and workshops/workstreams while we work to refine and develop the model of care and service configuration.
An important part of the MHAIDS change programme is the development of peer support services, which has its own separate workstream. Peer support will be embedded into the future Local Specialist Mental Health and Addiction Service.
Currently, we receive feedback on our services using the Mārama RealTime system. We will continue to use this tool to get feedback on how the changes are progressing and whether they are making a meaningful difference for people and whānau who use our services.
We acknowledge that there are significant changes ahead for the service, and we want to make sure that any transition is managed for people in a safe and sensitive way. Ongoing engagement with people who use our services is key to ensuring this happens.
Intersection with other services
