Dr. Sharon Lambert:

NDRIC was mentioned. We have a good framework called the interagency case management framework.

When I worked in services with young people in the community, we used that, but there were what we would call missing partners. Some people regularly did not turn up. We are talking about young people. Statutory mental health services and mainstream education were the two biggest things we needed for those young people. Those young people would get further pushed into specialist services meaning they were in places where they were meeting the same people all the time, people who were chronically unwell. We are starting that quite young. We need both. People who are using drugs should be entitled to use mainstream services and feel dignity and respect.

We have talked about culture and I actually think it is easier to change. Anyone who is my age or older will remember that we did not talk about mental health or suicide. It was very stigmatised. There was a huge national campaign to challenge the stigma of mental health. People are now okay going to their doctor or their employer and saying they have anxiety or depression. They are not okay going in and saying they are having difficulty with drug or alcohol use. It is the same thing; it is a mental health issue.