Recommendation 1

What the Royal Commission said

The Royal Commission called for a new Mental Health and Wellbeing Outcomes and Performance Framework. People with lived experience will help design the Framework.

A new Mental Health and Wellbeing Cabinet Subcommittee including the Premier (see Recommendation 46) will track outcomes and make decisions. The Victorian Government will report progress against outcomes every year.

The Royal Commission also recommended measuring performance alongside outcomes (Recommendation 49). This will:

• help Regional Mental Health and Wellbeing Boards (see Recommendation 4) help service providers improve
• enhance outcomes and experiences of consumers, families, carers and supporters; and
• help understand if consumers, families, carers and supporters are benefitting from services.

What are the opportunities?

An outcomes approach is central to driving reform and accountability. The Royal Commission set clear expectations for a transparent outcomes approach that:

• captures what matters most to people
• applies to government, service providers and the broader system
• will help transform the mental health and wellbeing system.

Outcomes are a priority organising feature for performance and accountability. They provide clear, unambiguous statements about what success should look like. They set the ambition for reforming Victoria's mental health and wellbeing system.

Outcomes measure the actual change or difference resulting from an intervention. Performance metrics tell us which actions support achieving outcomes.

What are we doing?

People with lived experience are helping design the new Mental Health and Wellbeing Outcomes and Performance Framework. People from mental health and wellbeing services and across government are also involved.

Tracking performance and outcomes helps us understand if we are making a difference. When implemented the Framework will enable the Government to:

• address the Royal Commission recommendations (and related recommendations from the recent Victorian Auditor General's Report, Measuring and Reporting on Service Delivery).
• describe what a high quality, contemporary mental health and wellbeing system looks like
• make a public commitment to the vision for a transformed system
• support government agencies and stakeholders working together with a shared understanding and direction
• enable collective accountability for improving mental health outcomes, and
• drive decisions about prioritising investments and trade-offs.