The Ministry of Health says while it isn’t able to comment on the work of specific organisations, the increase in calls to OUTLine may “be a follow on from the sector’s efforts to have mental health issues more widely recognised and accepted in our community”. OUTLine has revealed call numbers this year have increased 50-60% from last year, with last year’s numbers already 287% higher than any previous year on record. OUTLine is not a Ministry of Health funded organisation and the Ministry does not fund any LGBTI-specifc suicide prevention phone-lines. Dr John Crawshaw, Director of Mental Health, however, says that the Ministry does fund national telehealth services such as the depression helpline. “The health professionals responding to callers to this and the many other tele-health 24/7 helplines, including Healthline and the Alcohol and Drug helpline, support people experiencing suicidal feelings or seeking advice on a wide range of issues each day,” he says. “These helplines have staff who are trained in helping people who are experiencing issues that are related to their sexuality or gender, such as bullying. In addition there are a number of online support services.” OUTLine General Manager Trevor Easton says there is no obvious pattern as to why numbers are increasing and stresses that funding “is a major issue for us and is very scary at times.”
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Friday, 12th August 2016 - 5:54pm