Mental health funding from Mitsubishi development welcomed

Isaac Regional Council Mayor Anne Baker has welcomed funding support for mental health in the Bowen Basin from Mitsubishi Development.

Mitsubishi Development has announced it is funding a $500,000 pilot program to improve mental health services for individuals in the Bowen Basin, particularly relating to the impact of COVID-19.

“This is huge for our region, which takes in so many of the coal-mining operations of the Bowen Basin,” Mayor Baker said.

“Our communities are renowned for their resilience but there are times when we all need help, and at a time of uncertainty like this – with COVID-19 impacting so many aspects of our working and personal lives – mental health is vitally important.

“As Mitsubishi Development’s Chief Executive Officer, Sadahiko Haneji has said, while the resources sector has kept many Australians employed during the COVID-19 pandemic, there are many more in the community suffering job losses in sectors that will not recover quickly.”

Mayor Baker said the Isaac Region community needs to continue to work together to bring mental health out of the shadows.

“As I have said before, even in normal times it is estimated that 45 per cent of Australians will experience some kind of mental health condition in their lifetime.

“It’s vital that we all understand the mental health issues are common and that we all share the message mental health issues are treatable.

“The ground-breaking program being supported by Mitsubishi Development is being run out of Wesley Medical Research’s COVID-19 Rapid Response Research Centre, which aims to deliver immediate improvements to the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and management of COVID-19.

“The research pilot program for mental health will enable the identification of any gaps in terms of service and delivery, which has been really wanted in this region for some time.

“This presents a huge opportunity for the threading of all of the previous work over many years. In short, it will identify the gaps and build a sustainable service specifically tailored to the Bowen Basin

“I acknowledge and thank Mitsubishi Development for their funding support of mental health services, so important in the Bowen Basin and the Isaac Region in particular.”