Improving Access to Mental Health Services

Access to mental health services will improve across Nova Scotia as a result of the allocation of more than $2 million in program funding designed to provide better community support, crisis/emergency services and services for children.

In April 2005, Health Minister Angus MacIsaac announced that $4 million in additional funding for mental health would be distributed over the next two Department of Health budgets. Since then, the department has approved proposals totalling $2 million for the district health authorities and the IWK to increase access to mental health services in three priority areas: services for children and youth; crisis/emergency services; and community-based supports for those with chronic and persistent mental illness.

"Many families will benefit from the expanded services these programs will provide," said Mr. MacIsaac. "Improving mental health services within communities helps people get the care they need, as close to home as possible."

The investment will be used to help fund such services as mobile crisis teams and for increases in mental health staffing.

It will be added to the annual budgets of each of the district health authorities and the IWK as follows:
South Shore Health -- $100,000 South West Health -- $140,000 Annapolis Valley Health -- $150,000 Colchester East Hants -- $125,000 Cumberland Health -- $100,000 Pictou -- $162,000 Guysborough Antigonish -- $198,000 Cape Breton -- $150,000 Capital Health -- $350,000 IWK -- $365,000 Provincial education (nursing)-- $150,000 Employment program for people with disabilities (Colchester East Hants) -- $50,000 Canadian Mental Health Association, Colchester Branch -- $20,000

In 2003, Nova Scotia became the first province in Canada to establish a strategic direction and core program standards for mental health. These were developed with the assistance of mental health professionals, academics, advocacy groups, and mental health consumers.

As a first step in implementing the mental health standards, government added $2 million to the 2003-04 budget. The additional $4 million announced in April means that Nova Scotia will invest more than $6 million over four years to meet standards and improve mental health services.