Friday, June 17, 2005

Mental health and addiction services (New Zealand) Story at Scoop - "A recent fono (meeting) held at Pataka in Porirua was attended by over sixty Pacific mental health and addiction service providers, funders and planners in the lower North Island provided an opportunity to explore issues and challenges facing the sector. 'Pacific populations are fast growing and youthful,' confirmed Dr Debbie Ryan, Chief Advisor Pacific Health at the Ministry of Health. 'The changing demographic of these populations presents both a challenge and an opportunity to address the way we deliver basic services and address the cultural needs of our young people within an evolving environment,' Dr Ryan said. Pacific and Maori have a much younger age structure and higher fertility rates indicating a forecast for 2051 in which, 57% of Kiwi children will be of Maori or Pacific descent. At the same time the European share of the working population will fall from 78% to 66%."