Dunedin mental health activists stage sit-in protest

Scout Barbour-Evans says the Community Day Programmes are important outpatient services in Dunedin (Dave Goosselink)
Scout Barbour-Evans says the Community Day Programmes are important outpatient services in Dunedin (Dave Goosselink)

Four activists have tied themselves to a fence outside Dunedin Hospital to protest the shift of Community Day Programmes in the city.

The quartet, members of the group Stop the Cuts to Southern Mental Health, began their peaceful protest at 8am this morning, outside the Psychiatric Services building on Great King St.

Spokesperson Scout Barbour-Evans says the Community Day Programmes are important outpatient services in Dunedin that allow people living in the community to spend time doing activities, or taking part in workshops and learning skills.

"I'm concerned that moving services up to Wakari Hospital will centralise all mental health services up there", Mx Barbour-Evans says. "I'm concerned this will lead to other services being moved, after the South Community Mental Health team were shifted up there last year."

The group believes moving the programmes will make them less accessible for people using the services on a daily basis. Dunedin Hospital is planning to add more shuttles from the central city to Wakari Hospital, but Mx Barbour-Evans says that isn't a great solution.

"We can't keep on standing by and watching essential services becoming more and more inaccessible."

The protestors will be speaking with staff members about their concerns this afternoon, but claim the problem really lies with underfunding by the Ministry of Health.

Newshub.