New Mind Australia data shows the Mental Health and Wellbeing Locals are successfully supporting Victorian communities, including often marginalised cohorts and demographics.
Mind and its partners are proud to deliver Mental Health and Wellbeing Locals in Dandenong, Melton, and Bendigo/Echuca, with new services in Cardinia and Mt Alexander set to begin soon.
Funded by the Victorian Government, Mental Health and Wellbeing Locals make it easier for people aged 26 years and over to get mental health and wellbeing care and support closer to home. All support is free, voluntary and easy to access, and you do not need a referral from your doctor or a Medicare card to access help.
Since the Locals opened in 2023, Mind has supported more than 2,500 people experiencing psychological distress. Encouragingly, more than half of these people contacted their nearest Local directly, which indicates there is a high-level of awareness of Mental Health and Wellbeing Locals in these communities.
The top five most represented nationalities among service users, excluding Australia, were Afghanistan, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Sudan. The following demographics were also well-represented among Locals’ service users:
- First Nations identified people – 190
- LGBTIQA+ people – 150
- People from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) communities – 62
- People from refugee backgrounds – 30.
John Bamborough is Mind’s General Manager – Locals Establishment (Lived Expertise). He says part of the reason these Locals have been able to successfully engage with diverse communities is because the staffing profile of the services has been responsive to the services’ communities.
“We had a strong commitment to employ staff who reflect the diversity of the local community,” he said.
“We have been able to build a team that is truly diverse. The Dandenong team collectively speaks more than 40 languages, and our bicultural workers in Dandenong and Melton have been a great success in overcoming mental health stigma in their communities and bridge building between the Local service and local communities.”
Mental Health and Wellbeing Locals – recommended as part of the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System - adopt a ‘how can we help’ and ‘open door’ approach, to enable more people to access the support they need, including those who have previously been unable to find the right care and/or experienced barriers to accessing services.
To find your nearest Mental Health and Wellbeing Local call 1800 332 501 or visit the Better Health MHW Locals page.
Mental Health and Wellbeing Locals are not crisis services. In an emergency which is life-threatening or where there is immediate risk of harm to anyone, call Triple Zero (000). For 24-hour crisis support, call Lifeline on 13 11 14. Aboriginal and Torres Straits Islanders can also call 13 YARN on 13 92 76. 13 YARN is a 24/7 national crisis telephone service staffed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.