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Govt to spend extra $30m on mental health

Helen Morton. Picture: The West Australian/Simon Santi

The State Government will spend an extra $30 million on mental health services, including a two-year trial of a community program to keep young people out of hospital.

In a pre-Budget sweetener, Mental Health Minister Helen Morton today announced the Government will invest more than $612 million in specialist hospital services in 2015-16.

Speaking at Fiona Stanley Hospital where WA's first dedicated mental health unit for young people has opened, Mrs Morton said the new funding would include $2.5 million for a two-year trial of a specialist community mental health service to support young people with a mental illness to stay out of hospital, or return home after an inpatient stay.

"In addition to the dedicated youth beds, there is also a new eight-bed mother and baby mental health unit plus an eight-bed short-stay observation and stabilisation mental health unit," she said.

"This means 1283 additional admissions to a specialist mental health hospital bed each year.

"This Government has previously added 30 mental health beds to Rockingham Hospital, 13 at Broome Hospital and seven additional beds at Albany Hospital, allowing an extra 1081 admissions to a specialist mental health hospital bed each year."

Treasurer Mike Nahan said further investment would see more new specialist mental health inpatient services come online soon.

They include 30 beds at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital's new mental health unit and 56 mental health beds at the $360 million Midland Health Campus, which would replace current beds at SCGH and Swan Health Campus and nine beds from Graylands Hospital.

The 86 beds are expected to become operational later this year.

The Perth Children's Hospital due to open next year will have 20 mental health beds.