“The situation is now dire, and it is only a matter of time before the unthinkable happens. We must prevent the unthinkable.
“Parents and their suicidal children, sometimes children with Autism, are now regularly turned away.”
Le Messurier said there was also an acute shortage of public and private psychologists, counsellors and paediatric psychiatrists, with the problem worsening over the past three years.
“Currently many professionals have closed their waiting lists,” he said.
“It is common for a client to get on to a wait list for 2023 or 2024. It is heart breaking because these children, teens and pxjmtzywarents require immediate help. Often, they are utterly desperate.
“This of course, plays into a new unthinkable and unbearable scenario, particularly if we are to call ourselves a compassionate society. I plead for your kind and urgent assistance.”
Mark Le Messurier. Photo: australianoftheyear.org.au
More than a dozen politicians have committed to attending Saturday’s rally at 11.30am on the steps of Parliament House, including Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas and several Labor MPs, SA Best MLCs Connie Bonaros and Frank Pangallo, Greens MLCs Tammy Franks and Robert Simms and independents Frances Bedford and Dan Cregan.
The organisers say they would also like to see representation from the Liberal Party.
Parents for Change was founded by Adelaide mother Kate Stephens, after highlighted her family’s plight last year, prompting several other parents to contact her with similar stories.
She said Saturday’s rally would focus on “giving voice to the parents and their children who have been let down by the health system”.
“Thousands of young people are being denied care at every access point,” Stephens said.
“In a crisis, they are being sent home with no support, no referrals and no follow-up care. In a first-world country, this is unacceptable.
“I hear the tragic stories of hundreds of parents in the same situation that our family has faced.
“Some have lost their child to suicide after receiving no help at all from CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) or the WCH.
“It really is disgraceful that there is no accountability from this government for a deeply flawed system full of inconsistencies and gaps.”
Stephens said the group had invited Premier Steven Marshall and Health Minister Stephen Wade to attend the rally.
She said Marshall had declined due to other commitments and she had not heard back from Wade.
‘I’m very disappointed the Minister of Health, Stephen Wade, hasn’t responded to our invitation to our Rally for Change,” she said.
“Our youth mental health system is broken and the desperate cries from parents are falling on deaf ears.
“That’s why on Saturday we’re asking people to rally together on the steps of Parliament House to make the government listen and demand better mental health care for our kids.”
A petition for reform launched by the group now has nearly 12,000 signatures and will be presented at the rally.
Le Messurier said it was a long-standing “government funding/resourcing problem”.
“There are not enough mental health beds (just 11 to service all the kids in SA), too few staff (20 paediatric psychiatrists to service all the kids in SA), and too few resources (no increase in funding over the past 10 years and 41 percent increase in presentations in the last 12 months),” Le Messurier said in his letter to the Government.
“Consequently, the capacity to assess children, to make a considered opinion or to support parents with a hopeful and supportive plan with follow up is intermittent, or worse.
“The staff is under siege. These are great doctors, psychiatrists, nurses, and psychologists wanting to do what they were trained for, but in numbers too few, and unable to meet demand and expectations.”
Le Messurier said he would like to “enlist the Premier’s representation” at Saturday’s rally.
Labor Leader Peter Malinauskas has agreed to attend and will make a speech.
“This should not be a one-sided affair, so we’d like the Premier to speak,” Le Messurier said.
“This will create a lot of media attention, influence a lot of voters, and both parties are responsible for the dreadful situation parents and children find themselves in.
“This is a consequence of long-term neglect, dismantlement and worse. I’d love both leaders to own it and be equally responsible.
