Legislative Council - Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2)
2016-10-19 Daily Xml

Contents

Borderline Personality Disorder

The Hon. K.L. VINCENT (14:47): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking questions of the minister representing the Minister for Mental Health regarding borderline personality disorder.

Leave granted.

The Hon. K.L. VINCENT: In October we celebrate, or mark, Mental Health Day, Mental Health Week and Mental Health Month, but in this October 2016 we are yet to have anything to celebrate in terms of borderline personality disorder due to the government's reticence to take any action on this important issue. While the Mental Health Commission has been doing some good work on developing a statewide borderline personality disorder plan, the government has still committed to nothing in terms of real practical action. My questions are:

1. The period for the BPD action plan is 2017-2020, quite a long time, and the people with the most complex and severe presentations, who are most at risk of suicide and self-harm, need urgent assessment and treatment now by the service hub. Therefore, is the establishment of the statewide specialist BPD service or hub going to be a priority?

2. Will there be support for a Helen Mayo House new mother and child program articulated in 4.1 of the action area of the new BPD plan?

3. Will the BPD hub actually be a bricks and mortar venue or something virtual?

4. The BPD motion passed before the SA upper house in November 2014 and it has taken up until now to get something going, so will there be action on the priority areas within the action plan rather than a wait until 2020?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Employment, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation, Minister for Manufacturing and Innovation, Minister for Automotive Transformation, Minister for Science and Information Economy) (14:48): I thank the honourable member for her questions. I will pass those questions on to the minister in another place and bring back a reply.