What the Royal Commission said
The Royal Commission recommended that the Victorian Government:
- work with the Independent Hospital Pricing Authority and the Commonwealth Government to:
- ensure mental health consultation liaison services for consumers admitted for physical health reasons are formally recognised and adequately funded as part of routine care; and
- ensure mental health consultation liaison services are incorporated, costed and priced in the relevant classifications and standards.
- ensure public health services and public hospitals:
- receive adequate temporary funding to embed and deliver in-hospital mental health consultation liaison services as part of routine care until joint funding arrangements between the Commonwealth and Victorian Governments are established;
- are accountable for delivering in-hospital mental health consultation liaison services and, whenever required, provide such services to consumers admitted for physical health reasons; and
- are accountable for providing the sustained delivery of high-quality integrated mental health treatment, care and support across the hospital system.
What we’ve achieved
- A new Consultation Liaison intervention code was added to the Australian Classification of Health Interventions (ACHI) in September 2023.
- This means consultation liaison work can now be officially recorded, recognised, and costed within national health classifications and standards, helping ensure this activity is properly reflected and supported across the health system.
What we’re doing
- Building on this work, the Department of Health is progressing changes to allow appropriate activity‑based funding for consultation liaison services.
- The department has also strengthened how it monitors and oversees the performance of Area Mental Health and Wellbeing Services. This work aligns to the department’s Performance Monitoring Framework.
- The Framework supports stronger accountability across all mental health services, including consultation liaison services, by setting clear expectations, improving performance monitoring, and outlining how issues are identified and addressed.
Updated