Mental Health Program

Mental Health Respite Program

(Partial Extracts taken from the revised MH brochure, old Suncare website and suggestions from Toombul SSF- Sheryn O’Grady MHRP)

The Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) works in partnership with Suncare Community Services Commonwealth Respite and Carelink Centres to support and improve the lives of Australians.
The aim of Mental Health Respite Program is to provide support to carers, family members and individuals by increasing access to respite services that provide flexibility to meet the needs of carers and the person for whom they care.
The goal is to support carers, families and individuals to take a break, with an emphasis on building resilience, rebuilding lives, assisting with recovery and developing the skills to self manage in crisis and the longer term.

Mental Health Respite Program Delivery:

To ensure that the Mental Health Respite Program services meet the individual needs of the Carer and the care recipient/consumer, we aim to support, promote and encourage the importance of each individual’s own recovery journey.

The Mental Health Respite Program respects the needs of the Carer and the care recipient/consumer by promoting and supporting optimum choice, regarding their participation, involvement and decision making concerning which services are provided in support of resilience.

The Mental Health Respite Program provides funding for Carer Respite services with priority for ageing parents caring for adult children with a mental illness/psychiatric disability and carers of people with an intellectual disability.

Services will be provided using the existing network of Commonwealth Carer Respite Centres enabling carers, the care recipient and their families to have the maximum choice and flexibility tailored to their specific needs, including planned and unplanned respite.
The program will also aim to increase the availability of appropriate respite options where these cannot be procured through the usual system.

Program Eligibility:

Carers eligible to receive respite services under Mental Health Respite Program include:

Carers of people with severe mental illness/psychiatric disability and
Carers of people with intellectual disability.
Elderly parent carers over 65 years (50+ for Indigenous carers) who are the primary carer.
Other non-residential carers.
Carers of any age who care for a person with a mental illness who requires respite in an emergency situation.

Flexible Respite Options:

There are many flexible respite options and services that can support carers to enable them to take a break from their caring role. Respite can be tailored to meet the individual needs of both the carer and care recipient/consumer including:

In Home Respite & Community Access Linking:

A qualified mental health support worker may assist with capacity building strategies to work alongside the person you care for in areas of identified interest that enable you to take timeout from the caring role:

Recovery Mentoring – building resilience
Life Skills Development- rebuilding lives, assisting with recovery and developing the skills to self manage in crisis and the longer term.
Community Access Linking- support to reconnect and engage socially with various community linking options that may include both formal and informal networks of support.

Activity Based Respite, Cottage Style Respite & or Residential Respite:

Indvidualised Respite options to support carers and families to take timeout from the caring role, which may include:

Respite in a group setting with people who have similar interests.

How to access the program:

Carers or service providers can make referrals to the Mental Health Respite Program available through contacting our Commonwealth Carer Respite Centre network on 1800 052 222 (Freecall except from mobiles).

Benefits – what carers can expect from the mental health respite program:

Facilitate Carers access to a range of respite options and supports.
Raises the profile of carers of people with mental illness in the region.
Supports general mental health services to develop programs sensitive to carers’ experiences and needs.
Supports carer groups with group development, information, resources and education.
Promotes the development of carer resources and information relating to caring for a person with mental illness.
Identifies supports available to assist those with a carer role.
Identifies gaps in our service systems for carers and developing strategies to address these issues.
Facilitates networking between carers and workers on specific issues.
Co-ordinating professional education on carer issues.

Are there any limits to the respite that a carer is eligible to receive?

The amount of respite that a carer is able to access will be based on the carer’s needs. Carers will be assessed using a standard assessment tool to ensure that those in most need of respite receive it at the time they need it. However, the principle underpinning allocation of respite is that it is “short-term”, providing the opportunity for carers to “take time-out” from the direct carer role.