http://www.groupthink.com.au/2010/01/31/mental-health-and-markets-two-kinds-of-failure/ Tue, 03 Jan 2012 13:43:34 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.2 http://www.groupthink.com.au/2010/01/31/mental-health-and-markets-two-kinds-of-failure/comment-page-1/#comment-3932 C.J.Alroe Tue, 29 Mar 2011 21:05:31 +0000 http://www.groupthink.com.au/?p=792#comment-3932 What is exposed here is a general problem with the use of medicare funding to supply mental health services. Chronic mentally ill patients, the real ones whose finances are limited, who are often homeless and often disturbed are not cared for by either psychiatrists or psychologists. They cannot afford psychologists who add an additional fee to that paid by the MHCP and also psychology does nothing for them. Wealthy psychiatrists, who see the worried well in expensive private practices, do nothing for them. Mostly they are treated in public hospitals by untrained junior staff and IMG doctors who barely speak their language. What is exposed here is a general problem with the use of medicare funding to supply mental health services. Chronic mentally ill patients, the real ones whose finances are limited, who are often homeless and often disturbed are not cared for by either psychiatrists or psychologists. They cannot afford psychologists who add an additional fee to that paid by the MHCP and also psychology does nothing for them. Wealthy psychiatrists, who see the worried well in expensive private practices, do nothing for them. Mostly they are treated in public hospitals by untrained junior staff and IMG doctors who barely speak their language.

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