Thank you for your interest in the redesign of Victorian mental health and wellbeing crisis and emergency response system.

Before diving in, let's learn more about what this project is about, our engagement process, and how you can contribute.

A quick note:

This project is about mental health crisis response.

Your input on this platform is optional. Should you need any additional support through the engagement process, please refer to our "Support" page.

What is this project about?

The Victorian Department of Health is undertaking a phased approach to implementing Recommendations 8,9,10 of the Royal Commission into Victoria's Mental Health System. These recommendations focus on improving the way hospitals and emergency responders—like paramedics, police, and Telehealth— support Victorians who are experiencing mental health crisis. so that they do not have rely on emergency services and hospital emergency departments.

Through this project, the Department of Health is working towards a vision for the future of having ‘a mental health and wellbeing system that delivers inclusive, personalised, compassionate, integrated care so all Victorians are supported to live and experience the life they want.’

What did the Royal Commission find?

 The Royal Commission found the mental health crisis system had become overly reliant on emergency services and emergency departments. This has led to:

  • Unnecessary harm and distress to Victorians seeking crisis support
  • Increased pressure on these services and the workforce that support them

The Royal Commission recommendations seek to improve the response for people experiencing mental health crisis or psychological distress and the clinical assistance available for first responders.

What are the phases of these reforms?

  • Phase 1: redesigning how the mental health crisis system responds to people with urgent requests for help. This includes redesigning crisis services and creating new support options such as crisis outreach, telehealth, stabilisation services, and safe drop-in spaces
  • Phase 2: focuses on preparing frontline workers and organisations to deliver the models designed in Phase 1 subject to government funding
  • Phase 3: focuses on implementing these new and improved service models, moving towards a health-led response for those experiencing a mental health crisis, subject to future government funding

Implementing the continuum of services recommended by the Royal Commission will require partnership between services, adjacent sectors, government, and community. Careful sequencing over multiple years will be required to establish an inclusive, personalised, compassionate, integrated and sustainable crisis service system.

Who is leading this project?

The Victorian Department of Health is leading the implementation of these reforms. The Department of Health has engaged consulting firms Impact Co. and Lively Collective to support Phase 1 activities, including sector engagement to inform the design process.

For more information about the project, you can contact Impact Co. at engagement@impactco.au.

We anticipate a high volume of inquiries about this project. Please be patient as the project team works to respond as promptly as possible.

What is the project status?

Planning for Phase 1 engagement is now underway, and engagement is scheduled to conclude by 30 June 2025. The aim of this phase is to meet with sector and community stakeholders, including consumers, families, carers, supporters, First Nations communities, and diverse community stakeholders, to shape the new crisis system design and develop the crisis service models.

Engagement activities will support identification of the opportunities, gaps and challenges to address through reforms, and implications for local communities, and priority populations. The engagement activities will strive to include as many varied community and sector perspectives as possible.

Impact Co. and Lively Collective will be supporting this phase with the following:

  • Establishing this Engagement Platform which will provide a convenient central hub for project information, updates, and draft outputs for your feedback
  • System Design Engagement – Stakeholder engagement to inform a new overarching model for the Victorian mental health crisis service system through workshops, consultations, and this platform.
  • Service Model Design Engagement – Designing new service models for clinical assistance, crisis outreach, crisis telehealth, crisis stabilisation, and drop-in safe spaces via workshops, consultations, and this platform

What is the purpose of this online engagement platform?

This platform will be the central hub for access to project information, updates, and draft outputs for stakeholder input.

This platform will have two components:

  • A news bulletin for project information and updates
  • A forum for draft outputs where you can provide any feedback you have on the system and service model designs

What happens next?

If you would like to be kept up to date with the project, you may wish to subscribe to the news feed. This news feed will provide you with a series of project updates as well as notify you when draft outputs are live for your input.

All feedback will be confidential, with perspectives being considered through the design process.

The content on this platform will be available until June 30th. After this, Impact Co. and Lively's role in the project will end and the Department will continue to progress reforms.