• Christchurch Hospital’s Emergency Department now offers new peer support services to patients in mental distress.
• These services aim to provide comfort and help patients connect with community resources.
• The introduction of peer support workers is independent of changes in police’s mental health response in EDs.
Peer support workers at Christchurch Hospital’s emergency department are now assisting patients in crisis, drawing from their own experiences of mental health distress in the same setting. These specialists, who have previously sought help at the ED during times of significant stress, offer comfort and facilitate connections to community services.
Christchurch becomes the fourth hospital to implement peer support services, following Middlemore, Auckland City, and Wellington Hospitals, with plans to expand to other healthcare facilities. The service in Christchurch is provided by Odyssey House, Stepping Stones Trust, and Purapura Whetu.
Waiatamai Tamehana, a project leader, expressed the importance of supporting individuals who have faced similar struggles: “I’ve been through the ED pathway myself a couple of decades ago, so it is great to work with our kaimahi who have also used this ED at some point in their lives, and now come back and support other people through it.”
Dr. Annie Southern, another project leader, emphasized that peer support workers do not conduct assessments or provide clinical services. Instead, they offer assistance akin to what family or friends would provide, while also possessing knowledge of available community resources.
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey clarified that the peer support service is unrelated to recent changes in police responses to mental health crises. The service, operating as a pilot for a year, is expected to run from 4pm to 8pm, five days a week.
