Louise Miller-Frost (Boothby, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Australia's in the midst of a mental health crisis, and I'm not going to play partisan politics on such a serious issue. The statistics are stark. One in five Australians between the ages of 16 and 85 experiences a mental illness every year. One in two Australians will experience a mental illness at some point in their lives. Unfortunately, South Australia is no exception. One in five South Australians experiences a mental illness every year, and 43 per cent of South Australians will experience a mental illness at some point in their lives.

Chances are that you know somebody with a mental illness. It may be you. Yet, Australians are more likely to seek professional help for a common cold than we are for a mental illness. That's why Mental Health Month, which we marked in October, and Perinatal Mental Health Week, which we mark this week, are so important in bringing awareness to this health crisis.

It is a crisis that has long been underprioritised, underfunded and underappreciated when it comes to government support. The Albanese Labor government is changing all that, with an unprecedented $1.1 billion in investment in expanding and enhancing Medicare mental health services across the community and across the country, providing tailored and targeted support for all Australians and their mental health needs that is, crucially, accessible and affordable. The Albanese Labor government understands that mental health care is a right, not a privilege.

The numbers speak for themselves: 91 Medicare Mental Health Centres offering a free walk-in service delivered by a multidisciplinary team; 20 perinatal mental health centres for new and expectant parents; 17 Medicare Mental Health Kids Hubs providing early intervention support for children under the age of 12 and their families; 203 headspace services for young Australians between the ages of 12 and 25; 20 youth specialist centres for young Australians with complex needs; support for an expected 150,000 people with mild to moderate mental illness each year, with a Medicare mental health check-in, a free non-referral service over the phone and online, led by trained mental health professionals; and funding for more than 4,000 psychology scholarships, internships and training places.

In Marion, in my electorate of Boothby, we have an excellent headspace service that is much used. Next month we will welcome a Medicare Mental Health Kids Hub in the Marion GP Plus Health Care Centre. A Medicare Mental Health Centre will also be established in this area. Work on a perinatal mental health centre is currently underway in Elizabeth in northern Adelaide, and we can expect at least one more perinatal mental health centre in Adelaide as part of Labor's 2025 election commitment.

A new statewide eating disorder service will be built at the Repat Health Precinct in Daw Park, in the very heart of Boothby, providing inpatient and outpatient treatment for people living with an eating disorder. We're rebuilding and expanding the inpatient mental health service at the Margaret Tobin mental health centre at Flinders, which, when completed, will be able to accommodate 48 mental health beds, including 12 brand new beds in the psychiatric intensive care unit.

The metaphor of the black dog is often used to describe the experience of depression. While for many of us a dog is our loyal companion, the black dog of depression refers to a dark shadow that accompanies you morning and night. It interrupts your sleep. It craves your attention during the quieter hours of the day and barks even more loudly when your attention has strayed. It's the shadow on your joy, the shadow on every activity. It undermines your focus, saps your energy. Chances are, we all know somebody who is being stalked by their own black dog. Chances are, there are people in this chamber, in our offices, in our families and in our homes who know the black dog or other forms of mental illness.

The black dog can be kept at bay. Mental illness can be treated. As with all illness, often early intervention leads to a better outcome. That's why the Albanese Labor government's historic investment in the national infrastructure of mental health care is so vital. It will ensure that all Australians, no matter their age, the severity of their condition or their financial circumstances, can get the mental health support they need, wherever they need it and whenever they need it. I commend the motion to the House.

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