From 1 July, young people can access better mental health support with the opening of a new headspace satellite service in Pakenham.
The Pakenham satellite complements parent site headspace Narre Warren and will offer services to support young people's mental health, physical health and access to alcohol and other drugs services.
The site forms part of the Australian Government's investment in 2019 of more than $111 million to increase the number of headspace sites from 115 to 145.
"I am pleased that this funding and Headspace satellite service in Pakenham will help young people access the services they need, assist in improving mental health outcomes and helping to ensure young people can find a clear way ahead", Federal Member for Monash, Russell Broadbent said.
"The Pakenham centre will not only be of assistance to Pakenham residents but also a valuable service for our young people from Koo Wee Rup and further afield in accessing support services and integrated health services local to their community", he said.
While we are currently going through a challenging period with the impact of COVID-19, this new service in Pakenham will provide additional services to support our young people.
Funded by the Australian Government through the South Eastern Melbourne Primary Health Network (SEMPHN), headspace Pakenham will be operated byEACH, which also supports young people's mental health in south eastern Melbourne through headspace sites in Narre Warren, Dandenong and Hastings.
"As a community mental health service provider with over 45 years' experience in delivering a range of integrated health and support services, we understand the importance of these services being easy to access and delivered in a youth-friendly way", EACH CEO Peter Ruzyla said.
"headspace Pakenham will improve accessibility to services and improve mental health outcomes for young people, especially at this time. We know that young people are most likely to experience psychological, social and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic the most and so the opening of this new headspace site is timely", Mr Ruzyla said.
"EACH is proud to be a committed contributor to the headspace initiative and delighted to have this opportunity to provide this vital service to the Pakenham community", he said.
SEMPHN CEO Elizabeth Deveny said bringing services closer to young people is essential to providing accessible care.
"Reducing barriers to care is important, particularly for young people as they may not have navigated many health services before", Ms Deveny said. "Services like headspace encourage young people to reach out when they need support which we know is especially important during this pandemic."
headspace strongly encourages young people in the area to reach out when they may feel overwhelmed, particularly during times of uncertainty.
headspace CEO Jason Trethowan said, "We know with the right support we can help young people get through tough times and get back on track. It's been a particularly tough time for young people recently and it's great that headspace, a service trusted by young people, will be able to provide support to the local community".
In an effort to prevent the spread of COVID-19, headspace Pakenham will be delivering services to young people via phone and online rather than in-person, at this time.
The headspace Pakenham site is located at the Corner Main St & McGregor Rd Pakenham. Services is available remotely from10am - 6pm, Tuesday - Thursday.
