New Zealand doctor says substance abuse, mental illness may worsen among youth if centers are closed

From The Press in New Zealand:

The closure of Christchurch's youth health centre will mean more drug and alcohol problems, teen pregnancies and suicides, a doctor warns.

Dr Sue Bagshaw said she feared the rise in social problems could be replicated nationwide, with all youth health centres on "tenuous funding".

After 15 years delivering free sexual and mental health and GP services to Christchurch's young people, 198 Youth Health will close at the end of April.

Protests against the closure are mounting, with a Save 198 Youth Health Facebook site attracting nearly 1000 members. A rally will be held next Friday at noon in Latimer Square.

Labour MPs and groups such as the Mental Health Foundation have also voiced concerns about the centre's closure.

Bagshaw said clients and the centre's 14 staff were devastated.

Most patients would not be able to afford mainstream health services, she said.

The vulnerable clientele included young people who had suffered abuse and were using drugs and alcohol.

"There will be more suicides, there will be more alcohol and drug binge drinking, more teenage pregnancies," Bagshaw said.

Closing the centre would create costs for other agencies, she said.

A move toward capitation funding, where it was funded per patient registered, had hurt the centre as most clients were registered with a GP elsewhere. In the past financial year, the centre received $550,000 in funding from the Canterbury District Health Board (CDHB), while it expected $460,000 for the2009-10 year. The centre needs about $700,000 to keep running.

Bagshaw said all youth health centres were running on the "smell of an oily rag".

Others around the country were modelled on the Christchurch centre, so if other health boards followed Canterbury's lead, they could face closure.

CDHB planning and funding general manager Carolyn Gullery said it had tried to help the centre adapt to the new funding model.

However, other funding streams had dried up and the board could not "fill the gap", she said.

The board was exploring the viability of a "youth one-stop shop" service in Canterbury, she said.

A Health Ministry-commissioned report released last year said New Zealand youths had higher rates of mental illness, suicide and teen pregnancy, and suffered more injuries than young people in other countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Mental Health Foundation chief executive Judi Clements said 198's closure was "deeply concerning".

"One in five young people experience depression, and the lack of investment and subsequent closure means that many young people will be left with limited access to mental health and drug and alcohol services," she said.

Canterbury Labour MPs have written to Health Minister Tony Ryallasking for money to keep 198 Youth Health open.