In 2023 the Office of the Chief Psychiatrist (OCP), in partnership with the Southern Adelaide Local Health Network (SALHN), undertook a consultation to consider possible future mental health uses for the Southern Intermediate Care Centre (ICC) at Noarlunga. The Southern ICC was built in 2009 to support mental health care in a home-like setting. It was closed for mental health use in early 2022, and in the past 15 months, the building has been used as a residential transition service for National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) participants referred by SALHN.
More background about the consultation can be read in the original article on the OCP website published on 19 September 2023.
The Lived Experience Leadership and Advocacy Network (LELAN) were commissioned to undertake a consultation process with people with lived experience and providers to consider a range of options for using the site for mental health consumers. This report is now being considered by SALHN and planning units within the Department for Health and Wellbeing and this additional work will help guide a final decision about the future of the Southern ICC.
The LELAN report can be accessed here
The OCP is grateful for the work of LELAN and to the people and organisations who either completed questionnaires or attended consultation sessions. The report describes contemporary, innovative options for mental health care and is endorsed as a way forward by the Chief Psychiatrist.