Who do we assist?

The TMHC Clinical Consultation and Assessment Service is available to assist any person of NESB who is a resident of New South Wales and who experiences mental health problems. We are able to assist people who have been diagnosed with serious mental health problems or disorders and also those who are beginning to experience early symptoms and distress due to anxiety, depression and other mental health problems or disorders. The service is free and available to individuals, families, children, young people, adults and older people.

What do we provide?

The range of services offered include:

• Information and consultation about mental health and cultural issues
• Information about Government and non-Government health and welfare services for people of NESB
• Clinical intervention through over 140 bilingual mental health clinicians speaking over 50 community languages, who are from a variety of professional backgrounds including social work, psychology, mental health nursing, occupational therapy and psychiatry.

The role of the bilingual clinician is to provide:

• Psychosocial, psychological and psychiatric assessments
• Family assessments
• Psychoeducation for the client and their family
• Grief and trauma counselling
• Short-term therapy

The bilingual mental health clinicians provided through our service have the language, cultural and professional skills to effectively assist clients with their problems.

Telephone consultations are available for those seeking information and advice about health and welfare services, cultural issues, multilingual mental health resources, and ethnic community organisations.

Service providers are able to discuss cross cultural and case management issues with the Intake Officer or we can arrange for one of our bilingual mental health clinicians to discuss the issues with you.

How to make a referral

• Anyone can refer to the Clinical Consultation and Assessment Service. We receive referrals from service providers, family members, and from clients themselves
• The Intake Officer will clarify the nature of the mental health problem and how the Service can best be of assistance. The Intake Officer will match the client with a clinician who has the cultural and clinical expertise most suited to meet the client's needs.
• The allocated bilingual clinician will make direct contact with the client and arrange to see them at a suitable time and venue.

Outcome of intervention

At the conclusion of the intervention, the bilingual clinician will provide a clinical report that, with the client's permission, can be sent to the referrer or alternatively be made available to the client if requested. The bilingual clinician will make recommendations and refer the client to appropriate follow-up services as necessary.

Services for Rural and Remote Areas of NSW

As the TMHC is a statewide service, clients from rural and remote areas can be seen face to face, contacted via telephone or through the use of telemedicine facilities.

From 2002 TMHC commenced a clinical outreach service for people of Portuguese, Italian and Macedonian speaking backgrounds living in the Illawarra area, in partnership with the Illawarra Multicultural Health Unit.

An additional outrearch service has been established in Queanbeyan, targeting men of Macedonian background, in partnership with the Greater Southern Area Health Service. Further outreach services are being planned to target the Italian and Afghani communities in Griffith, southern NSW.

Callers from rural and remote areas can contact the service on 1800 648 911 (tollfree).

What languages do we speak?

The Clinical Consultation and Assessment Service has 130 bilingual mental health professionals who speak the languages listed below. The Service also provides cross cultural intervention in English, with the use of an interpreter as needed.