Posts by Marc C
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Speaker: Election 2014: Mental Health Policies, in reply to Angela Hart,
Thank you Angela, I like to challenge also the PSA and Mr Wagstaff, to hold a meeting with all their unions' leaders at MSD, to discuss their working conditions, and what "feedback" they get from "clients", so they can establish a more realistic picture of what goes on at the frontline, which to some at least rather now seems to be a "war front line" at WINZ offices. I point out again, there were a few incidents today, and I know from first hand sources, there are MANY not happy and also angry with the "service" they now get under this government.
It must be in the interest of the PSA and their members, to highlight this, to raise issues, and to take actions! When there are things very wrong in the system they are meant to work under, which can lead to such horrible consequences, they MUST take a stand and take action.
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Speaker: Election 2014: Mental Health Policies, in reply to ,
Yes it is over the top, but Tussock raises some questions, that are NOT being answered, as sadly the mainstream media chooses to just accept "official" comments by a Minister, a Chief Executive, and moves on. They did that with John Key for years, until suddenly "Dirty Politics" raised questions, and some still do not want to ask deserved questions.
No it is bad language and the wrong angle that Tussock uses, but there are too many unanswered questions. And Paula Bennett now admitting Tully tried to contact her or the Ministry, and New Zealand First also admitting, he tried to contact them, but saying, the emails kind of never went back to Tully, this is NOT convincing.
Too many are busy covering their backs, and they are abusing the fact of deaths of innocent front line WINZ staff to get off questions, making this all an emotive and twisted moral issue.
I do not buy what goes on, the media must research and ask more questions, there is more behind all this, that must be exposed.
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Speaker: Election 2014: Mental Health Policies, in reply to Ian Dalziel,
You raise a valid point of question! I am getting somewhat angry about how the media report on this horrible incident, and how MSD and WINZ, and especially their CEO and Minister are getting let off the hook. There are serious questions that deserve to be asked. The shooting did not happen just out of the blue, kind of, by some strange madman walking in, hungry just to see blood. Of course Tully is a murderer now, and committed a crime, and will be held accountable, and yes, the staff at the WINZ office at Ashburton, and that includes the two regrettable victims that died, and the person injured in hospital, deserve respect and so.
BUT, why is NO media doing any serious investigation about what was all behind the incident? This man, the killer, he tried desperately to reach out, to seek help, his way, which some may have misunderstood. In Ashburton 25 complaints were made when he set up tent in the Domain. He moved on, was forced so by police, to the Ashburton River. He somehow did not find earlier accommodation suitable, and had an issue, that is Tully. I hear today there is talk of a "waiting list" for housing in Ashburton, where though some Housing NZ houses stood empty. As a single person Tully will have had second or third priority, as I know the system, but did anybody explain it to him?
We hear of a "close knit society" there, and so forth, all sad and angry, and shocked, but a man, who grew up there, he was apparently isolated, left on his own, and then we hear Paula Bennett go on today, saying WINZ staff did ALL they could to help the man, yet he was trespassed last week.
I see, read and hear endless unanswered questions, and again, my impression is, we have a government department and staff stonewall, justify and protect themselves, and one suspect, he is now singled out, as a "harasser", so he needed to be trespassed, as the "problem", and the "criminal", and all others were righteous and without any guilt.
Honestly, I do not "buy" this, the system at WINZ has issues, they adopted welfare reforms that failed in the UK and killed many there, and now we are told, it is all just impossible to "comprehend" and "explain", while there were more incidents of threats and so today!
For heaven's sake, does anybody dare to ask questions and dig into this, it smells damned suspicious to me. A crime was committed, yes someone commited it, but are all others totally "innocent"?
No the system stinks, is unfair, is putting many under immense pressure, and Paula Bennett and this government have questions to answer.
Thank you all for your time!
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Speaker: Election 2014: Mental Health Policies, in reply to Kyle MacDonald,
She later apologised, I understand, and she claimed that at the time she made the controversial tweet, she did not know the full details and that two persons had been killed.
Condolences must go to the work colleagues, family members and friends of the victims.
Yes, it is wrong to "politicise" such tragic events, but questions must be asked, and hopefully will be asked and answered later, to shed light on what is behind of all this.
In the end, everything we do and say is somehow "political". That applies also to what government departments may be expected to do and deliver, as expected from a government.
That does not mean though that people do "exploit" such a drama, by raising valid questions.
So let us first give time for all to cope and deal with the immediate harm and consequences, and hope that the person responsible will soon be found and taken into custody and care, to avoid further harm. I really hope that there will not be further fatalities.
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Shocking news from Ashburton today, about a shooting in a WINZ Office there, may just sadly underscore that mental health policies and funding must be given absolute priority in New Zealand health policy. I heard the reports via the radio and at lunchtime I saw the TV news coverage, and at first I was in disbelief. But soon my mind moved to what I learned over the last two years, and I must admit, I feared some bad things may happen sooner or later.
This does also raise VERY SERIOUS questions about how WINZ handles certain cases! I was rather expecting that some people may resort to self harm, as has happened in many cases in the UK, where ruthless welfare reforms were pursued, and have only been partially reviewed more recently. Putting immense pressures on now even sick and disabled, to look for work, to do other things that especially mentally ill may struggle with, is creating a very dangerous environment, which can lead to unforeseen events.
While I will not jump to conclusions, I do strongly suspect that in this incident mental health issues were involved in the case of the person who is alleged to have now killed two WINZ workers, and injured another one seriously. Of course there is no justification for such actions, and the matter will be dealt with by police and other authorities. It is of great concern, at what risk front line staff at WINZ are being put, by flawed welfare policy they now push in every WINZ Office, and which staff have to deliver on.
Here is the latest news from 'The Press':
http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/10446236/Two-dead-in-Work-and-Income-shootingI am a bit critical about what Sue Bradford apparently tweeted, but on the other hand, I do agree with her previous criticism of the "welfare reforms" this government has forced upon tens of thousands of sick and disabled, facing re-assessments, where mental health conditions may not be taken serious enough by some assessors now, as they are told by MSD and the government, to rather look at what people supposedly "can do", than what impairments they have. Are we in some ways repeating the mistakes made in the UK? I fear we are, as there is little indication that MSD and WINZ have changed direction, and have their "designated doctors" and now also separate "work ability assessors" take a more principled and considerate approach.
I can only refer readers here to links in my comments above, to read and try to understand what is going on in New Zealand. For Paula Bennett, the main pusher behind all this, to now go to Ashburton to attend to the drama, that raises many questions in me.
This is an article critical of what Sue Bradford commented:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/10446861/Bradford-shooting-tweet-sparks-backlashIt is time to take mental health issues in this society damned more serious, I say!
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Mental health is a delicate area of medicine, and some new research into conditions, and how they result varying degrees of disability, has both been supported by some and disputed by others.
Here are links to some info about "findings" by controversial Professor Mansel Aylward that were used as "evidence" to justify changes in medical and work ability assessments, as part of welfare reforms by this government. Some posts are also about how MSD (the Ministry of Social Development) has under this government changed their approaches and implemented a new regime, and how this may represent risks for the affected, many suffering mental health problems.
According to Aylward and some of his colleagues work is now considered the "best medicine" to get well from illness and various mental health conditions. They conducted their research at the ‘Centre for Psychosocial and Disability Research’ at Cardiff University, Wales, which was for many years "sponsored" by equally controversial health and disability insurer UNUM Provident. It is worth noting too, that UNUM's US insurance branch was actually convicted for fraudulent abuse of medical assessments to deny insured rightful insurance claims. Here in New Zealand there was also much controversy about ACC's "exit strategy" for complex, costly claims cases. It can be said that in at least some cases ACC used similar methods as UNUM did in the US.
This is what the AFOEM and the medical profession now promote and propagate:
http://www.racp.org.nz/page/afoem-health-benefits-of-work
http://www.racp.org.nz/page/racp-faculties/australasian-faculty-of-occupational-and-environmental-medicine/realising-the-health-benefits-of-work/may-2010-video-presentation-professor-sir-mansel-aylward/The following posts express criticism of MSD's and WINZ's new approach, based on what was tried and done in the UK:
http://nzsocialjusticeblog2013.wordpress.com/2013/09/02/medical-and-work-capability-assessments-based-on-the-controversial-bio-psycho-social-model/Perhaps more real support is needed, in treatment, and in after care support, and certainly mentally ill should be involved in a very respectful, understanding way, rather than try and apply pressures, to save costs by whatever means.
I personally think a change of government may offer opportunities to do a better job in future.
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Thanks for the information in this post, showing mental health policy various parties have. I am not that surprised that Tony Ryall has not provided much information, and what National and their present government have been doing is not very convincing. It appears that mental health treatment and support has only been improved for certain target groups, like prison inmates and youth, and that it has otherwise been somewhat neglected, because figures for more elective surgery look “better” to the majority in the public.
I know enough persons who have suffered and are suffering from mental health conditions, and I have seen lives wasted, because of lack of support for them. Also have I at a time in my life used some mental health services myself, to overcome some personal challenges.
Besides of the government's talk about increased health funding (nominal, not so much per capita), there has been a tight cap on funding for mental health, in some areas a cut in real terms. For instance until a couple of years ago Procare Psychological Services here in Auckland were offering up to 5 free sessions with a counsellor (psychologist or so), as they received subsidies to do so for short term interventions. After that they suddenly had to reduce the sessions that were subsidised to 4, and for those 4 the persons using them had to make a minimum fee payment of 25 dollars or so, as the subsidies were no longer sufficient to fund that service.
Community Mental Health services offered by the DHB in Auckland are now turning away more people by telling them to seek treatment "in the community", as they only focus on high risk and serious cases. So people have to go around and try to find counselling somewhere else, costing hefty fees. While WINZ may pay for unemployed or low income people, they often do not cover the whole costs.
I have heard about CADS (Community Alcohol and Drug Services) struggling to maintain certain services, as they also have had limited funding, which does not meet the increased need they have experienced, not just due to population increase, but also due to increased awareness of addiction issues.
And so the list goes on, and I am sure there are other services around the country that have struggled to keep going, and to keep delivering services that are in increasing demand.
What really infuriated me was that the government did 2012/13 bring in "reforms" in social security and welfare (Social Development), which includes changes to medical and work ability assessments done by GPs and at times specialists, also WINZ's own "designated doctors" and now contracted private providers. More people with sickness and disability are not only "encouraged", but also pressured to look at work options and finding work on the job market, as doctors now rather look at "fitness" and "ability" of people with many conditions, than at their incapability or incapacity.
Many people on benefits due to health reasons suffer from mental health conditions, and one would have expected that the government would increase funding for treatment and support to actually try and help such persons get better and perhaps "fit" to work. Yet so far there is little indication of that happening, except perhaps for some youth, and most of extra funding is rather going into "intensive case management" by WINZ case managers and some private providers of new services, trying to place sick and disabled in work.
I read with some interest that Labour and Greens intend to spend more on mental health and want to ring fence spending in that area. I am also pleased to hear that Annette King and Labour want to increase spending on the HDC Office (Health and Disability Commissioner), as I have actually heard of them treating some people in a rather poor way, not bothering to investigate justified complaints. Indeed they need more funding, as last year they had over 1,600 complaints, of which only 60 or so were "formally" investigated.
As for the present welfare reforms and insufficient mental health and other treatments, and how the reforms potentially put people at risk, I recommend info available via 'nzsocialjusticeblog2013' (try Google or other search engine).
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My questions to Metiria and Russel are: How committed are you on the kind of social security (income support) and also disability policies you have published, and how high a priority will it be for you to push for the introduction of a universal basic income, so that you can convince Labour, your likely governing partner, to actually reform (or replace) the Social Security Act to the effect of bringing in such a system?
Also will the top ups for child raising persons on benefits, and for disabled sick, injured and otherwise incapacitated, as well as students be high enough to cover basic living costs and other immediate needs they have depending on their circumstances?
As for present WINZ policies on work ability assessments, which have traditionally been done by person's own doctor or specialist, or otherwise by "designated doctors", and which will now in many cases be done by new, outsourced, private, fee-earning "assessors", what is your position on how they should be conducted?
There has been lots of controversy about this, and the fact that DWP in the UK, and WINZ here have accepted "expert advice" from researchers like Mansel Aylward, who has written reports that many sick and disabled simply suffer from "illness belief", and may be "malingerers", raises major concerns about the appropriateness of assessments now being done. He was behind the failed medical and work capability assessment regime in the UK, causing much harm there.
MSD and WINZ have a Principal Health Advisor, Dr David Bratt, who has in presentations likened benefit dependence with "drug dependence", and who has fully accepted Aylward's supposed "findings", achieved through "research" paid for by a formerly convicted US insurance giant called UNUM. Dr Bratt is in charge of internal "health and disability advisors", and also trains "designated doctors", who are paid by WINZ, and many have raised questions about the independence of the doctors they use for second opinions.
Doctors are supposed to be independent, so are assessors of other backgrounds, but with the Australasian Faculty of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (AFOEM) also having fully adopted Aylward's approaches, are you as Greens leaders not concerned about what is going on in this area, affecting many sick, injured and disabled, who are now increasingly re-assessed for work fitness?
See this for some resources:
http://www.racp.org.nz/page/afoem-health-benefits-of-workBratt's presentation 'Ready, Steady,. Crook. Are we killing our patients with kindness?'
http://www.gpcme.co.nz/pdf/GP%20CME/Friday/C1%201515%20Bratt-Hawker.pdf
(see pages 13, 20, 21 and 35)http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2008/mar/17/epluribusunum
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Access: The Problem with the Greens’…, in reply to Rosemary McDonald,
Rosemary - I can assure you that the type of information that I have provided in my earlier comments here, by way of some links, leading to certain information sources, to Jan Logie, Mojo Mathers, Metiria Turei and also Kevin Hague. They are ALL informed about the issues I raised!
The same have been Sue Moroney, Louisa Wall, Jacinda Ardern, and even Grant Robertson and also David Cunliffe (the last two via their secretaries) from Labour.
And I am like you and a fair few others, highly frustrated, disappointed and suspicious about their true policy intentions. NONE of them have made clear commitments that I have asked for above, or at least sought clarifications on. So what can we do. I am tired of sending emails to MPs and candidates of parties, who are all primarily only focused on winning votes, and that primarily from the large "middle ground", which though has sadly other priorities than sick, injured and disabled with their serious challenges have.
Hence I am resigned to the fact that no matter who will win the election, and who will form the next government, the fight will need to go on, without any pause, as at best only moderate improvements can be expected.
As for the election itself, I am forced to cast my vote to the lesser evil, as I stated before in another thread, but I rather do that, than not vote at all, as that may lead to worse an outcome.
I am sure Mojo has been back here to check on responses to her comments, her hands are bound, by the party line, which is not determined by her alone.
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Hallo Mojo –
Thanks for your comments and your links that you provide to further information on the Green Party's disability policy. I had a read through it, and while it appears positive and good in general wording, I am a bit disappointed. There are many forms of disability, both physical, mental and psychological, and the persons affected may be impaired at varying degrees.
I am glad you and the Greens support the social model to support disabled and improve their rights and situation in society, also assisting them to participate in meaningful, fairly paid work, where possible and wanted. Much can be done, and I am sure is planned to be done.
But I share the concerns of others, that a wider approach may be needed, and that more steps should be taken for various groups and individuals that need special help to participate.
We have this government talk a lot about wanting to "help" people out of welfare dependency, and to offer support to those with some forms of disability to get into employment. What I have read and heard though is, that most of the extra funds has gone into more "intensive" case management, and it is unclear whether and how much they actually invest in enabling impaired persons to get where they want to be, to share benefits and responsibilities in day to day life with others.
My concern is that they are not honest (the present government), and that their messages and claims ring hollow, and that they primarily want to try to get more people off benefits, no matter what. The way the government has treated carers for disabled is also appalling.
I read with interest your party wants a welfare system with a Universal Basic Income (or so), and with additional supports for certain groups of persons, also disabled. This sounds good to me, as long as it will meet true needs. I am concerned though at the lack of policy from Labour, your party's natural ally in an alternative government, and that they are not planning to increase benefits, which have not been increased for ages. Only the base benefit is inflation adjusted, and the supplements for disability, accommodation and even temporary additional support have been capped and left unchanged for years.
What is the policy of the greens in more detail, as I really want to see your party to put the pressure on Labour to offer sick, injured and disabled on benefits not just a "fairer treatment" by WINZ, I want to see real improvements, also material and financial.
Re WINZ the following is a real concern to me, and I want to see that the Greens and Labour make a firm commitment, to move away from this government's approach, to use "advice" by such controversial UK "experts" like Mansel Aylward, who talks about "illness belief" and "malingering", especially when meaning mentally ill or those suffering musculo skeletal conditions:
Also there was another interesting blog post under 'Speaker' here not long ago, raising serious questions about the government's evaluation of the rather draconina welfare reforms brought in last year:
http://publicaddress.net/speaker/how-is-government-evaluating-its-welfare/
We get stonewalled, kind of, and it is not good. I really hope we will have a change of government, and expect the Greens to play a major role in it, as we get too little focus on real help and empowerment of the weakest in society from most other parties.
Rgds Marc