Eating disorder support service The Butterfly Foundation could be cut
EATING disorders have the highest death rate out of any other disease. So you’d think they’d receive loads of funding, right? Well, a crucial service is in limbo.
A CRUCIAL national support service for people suffering from eating disorders, The Butterfly Foundation, is in jeopardy, a result of the Federal Government’s restructuring of mental health services.
The Butterfly Foundation provides telephone, email and webchat support five days a week from 8am-9pm, and employs 10 part-time counsellors, or the equivalent of five full time staff members.
The service costs $700,000 annually and is paid for by the Federal Government, but this funding is only locked in until June 2017. After then, the future of the vital support service is up in the air. The Government is developing a new centralised online “gateway” as part of its shake-up of mental health services, the ABC reports.
A letter obtained by the ABC from the Federal Department of Health says: “It will bring together and streamline access to existing evidence-based information, advice and digital mental health treatment and connect people to services through a centralised telephone and web portal.”
There are more than one million Australians currently living with an eating disorder, but only a quarter of those are in treatment. The Butterfly Foundation says around 1000 people a month access its services.
The foundation’s CEO Christine Morgan says the lack of funding is particularly concerning because there is no other national support service for eating disorders.
“Eating disorders have the highest death rate out of any disease and they are not properly funded,” she told news.com.au.
“It would never cross our minds that a cancer patient wouldn’t be able to access treatment. We would be outraged by that. If you have cancer, you can access any treatment you need. It should be the same with eating disorders.”
Ms Morgan says the foundation’s services aren’t designed to be crisis or suicide-help services, but counsellors do have to deal with people who are at breaking point.
She also said general mental health experts aren’t enough, eating disorders need to be treated by professionals who specialise in illnesses like anorexia, bulimia and body dysmorphia.
“We provide very solid counselling services. People aren’t just ringing up for information or a referral. It’s not a crisis line, but they can be at a point of crisis when they ring.
“A general mental health service doesn’t have the specialised health knowledge that is needed to treat an eating disorder,” she said.
In a statement, the foundation called on Health Minister Sussan Ley and the Shadow Health Minister Catherine King to “accept their responsibility to people across the country suffering from this debilitating mental illness that also seriously impairs physical health”, double the organisation’s funding so a 24-hour service can be provided.
“There are currently only 37 adult hospital beds across the country for eating disorders, located in the state capitals, and no specialist services in regional areas,” the statement said.
“Not a single local health district or area has the necessary full continuum of care for eating disorders, and most do not have access to the necessary range of medical professionals for treatment.
“The Government needs to guarantee ongoing survival of the national ED HOPE supportline within the new digital gateway environment, and provide a funding boost of $1.5 million per annum, to increase capacity to 24/7 and improve its ability to provide online counselling services.”
Will this funding cut impact you? Email rebecca.sullivan@news.com.au