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Census of Forensic Mental Health Services 2005
Date of publication: April 2007
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Summary
Forensic mental health services were first established in New Zealand as a response to the issues raised in the Mason Report, which presented the findings of the Committee of Inquiry into Procedures Used in Certain Psychiatric Hospitals in relation to Admissions, Discharge or Release on Leave of Certain Classes of Patients 1989 (Mason 1988). Regional forensic services were established in Auckland, Wellington, Wanganui, Hamilton, Christchurch and Dunedin. These services were in addition to the National Secure Unit at Lake Alice Hospital. The role of these regional services was to assess, treat and rehabilitate people with a mental illness who had, or were alleged to have, committed a crime and those who were likely to offend.
The National Study of Psychiatric Morbidity in New Zealand Prisons (Department of Corrections 1999) was produced after the Ministries of Justice and Health sought more information on mental illness in the prison population. It found that, in comparison with the general population, a disproportionately high number of prisoners have mental illness. While the National Study was being undertaken, the Ministry of Health began developing a framework for forensic mental health, Services for People with Mental Illness in the Justice System (Ministry of Health 2001a). As part of the development process, a census and qualitative survey of forensic services (as at September 1999) was completed.
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Since that framework was developed a number of changes have occurred within the wider environment of forensic services.
The National Secure Unit at Lake Alice Hospital has closed and replacement beds have been located within regional forensic inpatient units.
Additional services, including inpatient and prison liaison services, have been put in place.
Legislative arrangements have changed, with the replacement of part 7 of the Criminal Justice Act 1985 by the Criminal Procedure (Mentally Impaired Persons) Act 2003, and with the enactment of the Intellectual Disability (Compulsory Care and Rehabilitation) Act 2003.
New inpatient services have been put in place for the secure compulsory care of people with intellectual disability.
New community services have been developed for people with intellectual disability and a history of offending.
Intersectoral initiatives are occurring or are in development for meeting the mental health needs of children and young people in the youth justice system (under the Children, Young Persons and their Families Act 1989).
Prison musters have increased, and new prisons have been (and are being) built.
As a result of these environmental changes, there have been a number of changes to the configuration of forensic services within New Zealand.
In October 2005 a new census of forensic services was carried out. This census had wider coverage than the 1999 census, and information was collected on:
forensic inpatients and community-based forensic service users at all regional forensic services, and Hauora Waikato, as at 10 October 2005
prison liaison service users as at census date (10 October 2005), and prison liaison service activity for the month from 10 October to 10 November 2005
court liaison service activity for the month from 10 October to 10 November 2005, and court reports prepared in the month from 10 October to 10 November 2005
bed numbers and staffing levels at all regional forensic services, and Hauora Waikato.
These bullet points reflect the structure of sections 2 to 5 of this document.
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This publication is available in Word and PDF format below:
Census of Forensic Mental Health Services 2005 (Word, 1.2 MB)
Census of Forensic Mental Health Services 2005 (PDF, 346 KB)
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Date of publication: April 2007
ISBN 978-0-478-30767-2 (Online)
HP4374
Citation: Ministry of Health. 2007. Census of Forensic Mental Health Services 2005. Wellington: Ministry of Health.
Related information
Mental Health
Media Release:
Increase in services for forensic mental health patients (11 April 2007)
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