From 1 January to 25 July this year, 255 Mission Australia frontline staff across 75 of our homeless services nationally spent 5,896 hours helping people with mental health issues. In the same period, they spent 4,093 hours helping people with homelessness issues and another 1,379 hours in relation to clients at ‘risk of homelessness’ – a total of 5,472 hours.
This illustrates the strong link between mental illness and homelessness and follows on from Mission Australia’s groundbreaking study of homeless men last year that found close to 70 per cent had a diagnosed mental health or substance use disorder, 81 per cent had “very high levels” of psychological distress and exhibited Post Traumatic Stress Disorder at levels 20 times greater than the general male population.
Mission Australia CEO, Toby Hall, said the new data provides an insight into an important aspect of Australia’s broader mental health problem and of the huge demand homeless services face from people wrestling with mental illness in addition to their need for shelter.
“When you look at these figures, there’s no doubting how big an issue mental health is for both the people accessing our homelessness services and our frontline staff,” Mr Hall said.
“And when looked at in combination with Mission Australia’s earlier research on the extent of mental illness among homeless men, we are looking at a hugely significant problem. Through Mission Australia’s data collection we’re able to see exactly the type of supports our homelessness services offer young people, adults and families on a daily basis.
“It tells us that in a little over the first six months of 2011, frontline staff in our homelessness services put in more hours assisting people with mental health needs than with issues directly related to their homelessness. That’s quite extraordinary. That includes conducting health assessments, providing counselling – both formal and informal – and referring clients to more specialised medical care.
“It also reflects the complexity of the support we provide homeless people. Often our work isn’t primarily about finding someone a ‘roof over their head’; it’s about tackling the issues that stop them being able to maintain independent accommodation.
“For example, a debilitating mental illness that, untreated, makes it impossible for an individual to hold down a job or a home. For both homeless people – and the staff that support them – it’s an issue that keeps on getting bigger and bigger.
“This National Homeless Persons’ Week, while it’s important to recognise the downpayment the Australian Government made on mental health in its last budget – at $2.2 billion over five years, a significant amount – we need to keep in mind how huge the demand out there is, particularly among our community’s most vulnerable.
“I suggest that the experience of our frontline staff is just the tip of the iceberg. The government’s mental health funding is going to need to stretch a long way,” said Mr Hall.
For more information see our Media Release.
National Homeless Persons’ Week in SA and Queensland
In South Australia, Mission Australia is giving away a large number of single and double beds with mattresses to our own homelessness services and non-government partners for people in need. Find our more about our Sleep Better initiative here.
In Queensland, the battle for affordable housing worsens. Mission Australia staff are now spending almost twice as many hours trying to find appropriate permanent housing for people as they were six months ago. Read more here.
Further reading:
- Sean Tovey’s ‘treatment’ for sleeping out
- Find out what’s happening during National Homeless Persons’ Week
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