Organisational Change in Mental Health Services : The How and the Why

Abstract

National Mental Health Policy in Australia is well understood and widely disseminated. Both the first and second National Mental Health Plans are explicit in what is required of the specialist Mental Health service sector. The expectations include demonstrated progress towards mainstreaming, fully integrated hospital and community-based services, well-developed partnerships with consumers and carers, with general practice and the primary care sector and with the non-government organisation (NGO) sector, a commitment to mental health promotion and prevention as well as intervention and treatment services and improvements in quality and effectiveness.

Organisational change management theory and practice describes how service unit level changes can be brought about, it describes visioning, engagement, resource investment, systematic implementation and monitoring and feedback.

The challenge is utilising change management strategies to implement local service unit level interpretations of national strategy. The levers, resources, barriers and culture carriers do not automatically line up and the leadership of service unit level change requires expertise in interpreting and linking between the two.

From past experiences of institutional change management, through to regional service developments and current role at the state level as policy driver for a major reform agenda, the author describes examples of linking national policy with local organisational change.