Better Sooner More Convenient Primary Care - New Zealand Doctor
Better Sooner More Convenient Primary Care - New Zealand Doctor
Better Sooner More Convenient Primary Care - New Zealand Doctor
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Further professional development for core general practice teams will be required.<br />
Increase in the Māori workforce will be required to effectively deliver kaupapa Māori services.<br />
8 Effect on inequalities<br />
Māori and low socio-economic people are over represented in mental health clientele.<br />
The Māori mental health team will work alongside the primary and secondary mental health<br />
services to ensure that clients receive a culturally appropriate service.<br />
Locating mental health services in IFHCs will help reduce the stigma and marginalisation of<br />
those presenting with mental health problems, particularly those with addictions. It will also<br />
help them to access the physical care they need from their primary health care team.<br />
9 Evidence for this initiative<br />
Aspects of this plan follow the recently released guidance paper, Towards optimal primary<br />
mental health care in the new primary care environment 57 .<br />
Placement of mental health workers within primary care has been the subject of a significant<br />
body of research. A recent Cochrane review of 42 studies 58 concluded:<br />
“This review investigated whether having mental health workers on-site to work with physicians<br />
at their offices would change the care that physicians provide. Forty-two studies were reviewed<br />
in which on-site mental health workers, such as counsellors or psychiatrists, worked alongside<br />
physicians to provide therapy to patients. The review found that when there were mental health<br />
workers on-site, patients may reduce the number of visits to their doctors; doctors may reduce<br />
how often they refer patients to off-site mental health specialists; doctors may reduce the<br />
number of drugs they prescribe to the patients who see the mental health workers; and the<br />
costs related to those drugs may be lower. However, these reductions were small and not found<br />
consistently in all the studies.”<br />
57 Ministry of Health. Towards optimal primary mental health care in the new primary care environment. MoH,<br />
Wellington, 2009.<br />
58 Harkness EF, Bower PJ. On-site mental health workers delivering psychological therapy and psychosocial<br />
interventions to patients in primary care: effects on the professional practice of primary care providers. Cochrane<br />
Database of Systematic Reviews 2009, Issue 1. Art. No.: CD000532. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD000532.pub2.<br />
Business case appendices V12 AC 25Feb2010 Page 98