The Government's trumpeting of a rise in numbers of mental health and addiction service workers contrasts the everyday experiences of PSA members at the frontline.
The Minister for Mental Health Matt Doocey today said Health NZ payroll data showed total full-time staff employed in mental health growing by more than 9 per cent year on year between Quarter 3 in 2023 and Quarter 1 2025.
But PSA members tell a different story.
"Any increase in numbers is long overdue but this only scratches the surface and vacancies and roster shortages remain. With demand for services growing, partly due to a rise in drug use, we need far more mental health workers," said Fleur Fitzsimons, National Secretary for the Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi.
"The Minster's own officials are also telling him something else."
In May 3 News obtained a draft report showing the scale of the workforce crisis, but the official report to the Minister removed the numbers. The draft report said 1,485 more frontline mental health and addiction workers were needed right now, including 470 specialist nurses, 145 psychiatrists and 145 clinical psychologists.
"Conditions and pay must improve or more workers will face assaults, burn-out and depart for Australia where pay and resources are far better.
"Our members tell alarming stories of the pressure they are under including:
- Long delays filling vacancies, sometimes more than a year
- Constant threats to safety from patients at EDs and in patient clinics
- Concerns falling on deaf ears of managers
The Government is also relying on data that is more than a year out of date to trumpet a minor fall in the vacancy rate from 11% to 10%.
"These problems have been exacerbated by the phased police withdrawal of support, which is happening without an increase in resources at the frontline. This needs to be paused immediately.
"The Minister needs to take his rose-tinted glasses off and properly invest in this critically important health service. New Zealanders deserve better."
