Over the past 14 years the TMHC's mission has been to work in partnership with mental health services, consumers, carers and the community to improve the mental health of people from CALD backgrounds living in NSW. Partnership models underpin all activities of the TMHC and aim to advance mental health policies, programs and services to ensure access and equity by respecting cultural and religious beliefs, traditions and sensitivities.

The TMHC is a unit of the Diversity Health Institute (DHI), and thus is a key partner in a coalition of public health organisations working together to improve the health and wellbeing of Australia's CALD communities. Within the DHI, services have demonstrated over a decade of experience in devising programs that enhance the capacity of health service providers to identify and respond to the needs of CALD communities. The DHI also organises a bi-annual international conference as well as regular forums for the exchange of knowledge and skills of those working in the field of diversity health locally, nationally and internationally. This partnership with the DHI provides regular opportunities for the TMHC to link with other specialist units when required, such as the DHI Clearinghouse in the production and promotion of resources.

The partnership ethos of the TMHC is also paramount in the delivery of services. The TMHC has adopted the view that to address issues of equity and access, work cannot be undertaken in isolation. Thus, the TMHC works in parallel with mainstream mental health service providers by being a specialist resource to assist carers and consumers from CALD backgrounds obtain better access to services.

This involves a two-pronged approach. Firstly, direct services can be provided to clients via the TMHC Clinical Services Consultation Model and specific Outreach Clinics.

The TMHC Clinical Services model involves utilising a flexible workforce of over 130 sessional bilingual and bicultural mental health professionals who between them speak 53 languages, including those languages spoken by newly emerging CALD communities. The workforce capacity is both multicultural and multidisciplinary. The TMHC sessional workers can be deployed to cover any region in NSW to assist mainstream health providers accurately assess CALD clients presenting with mental health issues, and assist in the development of culturally appropriate treatment plans.

A major strength of the TMHC Clinical Services model is the concept of sharing scarce health resources without duplicating services already in operation, which ensures cost effectiveness as resources can be focused on areas of high need. The TMHC Clinical Service provides culturally specific support to mainstream workers who remain responsible for the overall clinical management of consumers using mental health services. The model is flexible in that it can address the needs of people with long-term mental health problems, as well as those within the early stages. It can also cater for children, adolescents, families, adults, older people, carers, and individuals who are at different stages in their migration experience, such as newly arrived communities, refugee population groups, second generation migrant/refugee population groups and at risk and vulnerable population groups.

As the provision of the TMHC Clinical Service is largely dependent upon a flexible sessional pool of workers, the service is capable of quickly adapting to changing needs of communities. It also allows a service to operate without waiting lists as clients are generally seen within one to two weeks of a referral.

The second approach utilised by TMHC in promoting access and equity is the development of resources and provision of training to mainstream services providers to enhance their skills in providing care for consumers from CALD background. The educational programs of the TMHC are designed to provide ongoing professional learning and clinical skill development in ethno-cultural factors related to mental health, and can take the format of in-service programs, specific training sessions, and clinical supervision programs.