NSW mental health care system 'on the brink', but how is the Hunter faring?

Some people do find help and innovative solutions to the problem are being offered, but there are calls for more government funding.

In a report released on Tuesday, the NSW Branch of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists highlighted the issue ahead of the state election on March 25.

The report, titled The NSW mental health care system on the brink: Evidence from the frontline, was released with an alliance of peak bodies.

They urged all political parties to commit to "comprehensive reform and investment" in the state's mental health system.

The alliance is calling for an expert taskforce in the new government's first year to conduct "a gap analysis of mental health services across the state".

Lana Hibbard, lead clinical counsellor at Avondale University, said "it is hard" for people to access mental health services in the Morisset area.

"There are long wait lists. Demand outstrips supply," she said.

"Although you can go to a GP and get a mental health care plan, it's time limited."

Helen Fenner, of Ashtonfield in Maitland, said "sometimes it takes weeks and you're on a waiting list" to see a psychologist or psychiatrist through a GP.

But Mrs Fenner, who lives with schizophrenia, depression and anxiety, said she had a good experience with the public system when she was sick at Christmas.

"I had great support from Hunter Health, Flourish Australia and Manaaki through the NDIS. Hunter Health nurses came and saw me every day. But I think we need more government help in the mental health area," she said.

"I feel sorry for the ones who are homeless. Where do they go?"

Dr Angelo Virgona, chair of the NSW Branch of the psychiatrists college, said "NSW is languishing".

"The mental health workers across the state describe a system that's too complex, too hard to access, fragmented and weighed down with inequality," Dr Virginia said.

"While the system is fragmented, NSW health workers are united. We want to see commitment towards the sector being better resourced, better managed, more coherent and better connected."

Mental health care crosses the public and private sectors and non-government organisations.

The Newcastle Herald has previously reported people with personality disorders facing long waits to access psychotherapy and shortfalls in acute mental health services in the Hunter's public system.

Hunter New England Health wouldn't comment on the report, due to it being timed for the election.

Rus Kirchner, of Newcastle, has sought help for depression.

"For me it was about taking the step to get help. I am literally talking about picking up a phone and dialling a number. My experience, once inside the NSW health system, has been great," he said.

He saw a GP, was prescribed medicine and has seen a psychologist in the past. He said it helped that "my wife normally organised this for me".

Ms Hibbard said that once people reach six free sessions with a psychologist through Medicare, "the need has not been adequately addressed".

"To continue to see a psychologist is out of the question for most low-income earners. That's where we come in."

In an innovative response to the problem, Avondale University worked with the Morisset ADRA Op Shop to offer an affordable counselling service, which opened a fortnight ago.

"Although we can't do a mental health care plan and access that Medicare program because we're counsellors, we can offer ongoing and unlimited counselling sessions that are affordable and probably cheaper than what most psychologists charge as a gap," Ms Hibbard said.

A spokeswoman for NSW Mental Health Minister, Bronnie Taylor, said if re-elected the coalition government would work with the sector to ensure it meets the needs of consumers in a compassionate and responsive manner.

"The NSW government has undertaken significant investment into the mental health system over the past 10 years," she said.

Opposition Leader Chris Minns defended Labor's mental health plan, pointing to pledges to substantially boost funding for Kids Helpline, Lifeline and women's health centres.

Former NSW Labor deputy premier Carmel Tebbutt now represents community mental health services as chief executive of the Mental Health Co-ordinating Council.

She says far too many people are missing out on vital mental health services that could be provided by community-managed organisations.

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