Mental Health Awareness Week Speech

Kia Ora, good morning and warm greetings to you all.

It is a great pleasure to be here today to open this seminar, which provides a valuable opportunity to highlight the positive steps that can be taken to promote mental health and wellbeing.

I am sure today's discussion will also again highlight the various barriers that can at times prevent New Zealanders from different backgrounds from seeking and accessing help with mental health issues. 

Discussions like this are important in building understanding of the fact that mental health issues affect people from all walks of life, men and women of all ethnicities, and from all socio-economic backgrounds. 

Promoting mental health and wellbeing requires an understanding of cultural diversity, including respect for difference and a willingness to learn and acceptance of different ways of viewing the world.

Studies suggest that the mental health trends of many ethnic New Zealanders are not much different to that of New Zealanders overall.

However, language barriers, underemployment, unemployment, isolation and separation from family are often associated with mental health problems such as anxiety and depression, and can be felt acutely by new migrants. Cultural differences, homesickness, discrimination, the stigma of seeking assistance, and a lack of knowledge of available support can aggravate these problems.

The theme to this year's Mental Health Awareness Week is: "Winning ways to Wellbeing".  The theme sets a number of goals towards achieving this:

* Connect: Develop your relationships with friends, family, colleagues, and neighbours as these connections support you and enrich your life.

* Take notice: Be aware of the world around you and see the beauty in everyday and unusual things. Reflect on them to appreciate what matters to you.

* Learn: Try something new or rediscover an old interest, or take on a new responsibility or challenge. Learning inspires confidence.

* Give: Do something for a friend or stranger and see yourself and your happiness linked to the wider community.

Last week, I had the privilege of attending the Bo Ai She Chinese Art competition, which illustrated many of these elements well.

The competition was the result of work done by the Mental Health Foundation's Kai Xin Xing Dong advisory group and the Bo Ai She group of mental health professionals.

The aim of the competition was to "counter stigma and discrimination associated with Chinese people who experience mental illness as well as to create mentally healthy Chinese communities in Auckland". 

The competition was a chance for participants to put their feelings and thoughts on canvas and feel a sense of pride by exhibiting them in the competition.  It was a great example of the promotion of wellbeing through engagement in community activity.

As I mentioned, mental health issues are common and can affect any one of us.  The reality is that almost half of all New Zealanders will suffer from mild to moderate mental health problems at some stage during their life and it is crucial that as a nation we can provide the help they deserve.

The figures are higher within our retired communities; where problems such as loneliness and isolation from friends and family can be particularly significant for older people both in the community and in residential care.

An important part of ensuring wellbeing is the assurance that all New Zealanders, regardless of their culture, are aware of and are able to access the help and services they need.

The National-led Government is committed to ensuring that people with mental illness and the people around them have support services to help them.  In Budget 2009, an additional $5.3 million was provided to address mild to moderate mental health problems in primary health care.

A recent report into the effectiveness of the Ministry of Health-funded Primary Mental Health Initiative found that about 80 percent of people benefit from using Primary Mental Health Services.

It is crucial that we ensure our Primary Mental Health Services have the tools and the resources they need to help and support the millions of New Zealanders who suffer from mental illness.

The Government has also invested an additional $2.7 million in the National Depression Initiative - which is a very valuable and important early intervention service.

This additional funding will also be used to extend and grow this initiative, which includes an online self-management programme that anyone can sign up to and seek help from.

It is important that we encourage people with mental health issues to seek help, because through early detection we can ensure that mental illness does not have to be a life sentence.

Over the past decade, attitudes in New Zealand have changed about the way we view mental illness. It is no longer seen as something that doesn't affect us, but rather as something that affects our friends, family, neighbours and communities.

This has come about largely as the result of highly effective campaigns, including the ‘Like Minds like Mine' programme launched by Hon Bill English back when he was Minister of Health in 1997.

The ‘Like Minds Like Mine' campaign was set up to counter the stigma and discrimination that is often associated with mental illnesses and has featured iconic New Zealanders, including former All Black John Kirwin and Kiwi music legend Mike Chunn.

This campaign continues to improve the lives of hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders and it is important that we continue to build on it to ensure that those suffering from mental illness do not have to suffer alone.

Because by building greater understanding across all cultures and communities, we can ensure that every New Zealander can discover a "Winning Way to Wellbeing".

I am sure you will agree that Mental Health Awareness Week is vitally important in raising awareness of the continuing need to make mental health a priority for all people. 

Thank You.