Adelaide Expands Successful Mental Health Program
The Malinauskas Labor Government is expanding a mental health support program to improve outcomes for people in distress, reduce the number of presentations to hospital emergency departments and free up more SA Police for frontline duties.
The 2025-26 State Budget provides $13.9 million over five years to continue and expand the Mental Health Co-Responder Program right across Adelaide.
Established under Labor in 2022 as a trial, the co-responder program pairs a mental health clinician with a police officer to respond to mental health Triple Zero call outs.
The additional funding will enable the program to expand into the southern suburbs beginning October this year, following successful results in the Central Adelaide Local Health Network and Northern Adelaide Local Health Network.
The co-responder model has prevented 2,472 ED presentations, and it is expected the expansion to the Southern Adelaide Local Health Network will further prevent approximately 800 more ED presentations a year.
The approach taken by the program has shown to improve mental health crisis responses, divert individuals from EDs and provide trauma-informed care, leading to both improved outcomes and greater community safety.
Patients can undergo a specialised mental health clinical assessment and when needed follow-up referrals made, reducing the potential of a police callout in the future.
The rate of delays at hospitals for police officers bringing in offenders and patients has significantly improved under the Malinauskas Labor Government.
In 2021-22, more than half of all police drop-offs at hospital were delayed. This has now fallen to less than a third, despite a 47 per cent increase in the number of police transports to hospital.
This co-responder model has allowed more officers to be freed up to respond to other police matters in the community to keep South Australians safe.
The co-responder model complements the comprehensive range of public mental health services already in place for children, adolescents, adults and older people in South Australia.
Additionally, more than 130 new mental health beds will be brought online across South Australia following additional funding from the Malinauskas Labor Government in previous budgets.
As put by Stephen Mullighan
The co-responder program has been incredibly successful, providing better outcomes for people experiencing a mental health crisis.
At times, a large number of SAPOL callouts involve people with mental health concerns who require mental health support of some kind.
Introduced by the Labor Government, the co-responder model has reduced presentations at our emergency departments and limited police handover delays at hospitals.
This significant $13.9 million investment will see this model expanded to the southern suburbs following successful results in northern and central metropolitan Adelaide.
As put by Chris Picton
Emergency departments are often not the best place for people needing support with their mental health which is why programs such as this are so important.
We’re expanding our successful co-responder program to the southern suburbs to better help even more people experiencing a mental health crisis.
Keeping people out of hospital who don’t need to be there is not only much better for them, it’s better for our health system.
As put by Nadia Clancy MP, Premier’s Advocate for Suicide Prevention
This program is a powerful example of cross-agency collaboration delivering real results for South Australians. By pairing police officers with mental health clinicians, we’re ensuring people in crisis receive the right care at the right time.
Often that means keeping people safely in their homes and connected with mental health supports, rather than being taken to hospital which can be further distressing.
The partnership between SAPOL and our mental health services is not only improving care, it’s enhancing efficiencies and building a more compassionate, responsive system for those in distress.
As put by Acting Assistant Commissioner John De Candia, South Australian Police
The co-responder model provides better outcomes for people experiencing a mental health crisis.
Police are not qualified as mental health clinicians and at times the police presence can have a significant impact on the person who is experiencing a mental health episode.
The expansion of the partnership that already exists between Police and SA Health will allow for an alternative approach to dealing with mental health in the southern suburbs that will ultimately reduce demand on police and enable us to undertake proactive policing and prevent crime.
This model has prevented 2,472 presentations to emergency departments since commencing in 2022, which is of benefit to SA Health, and ensures that police are freed up for frontline duties.
Attributable Titus Mohan, Mental Health Clinical Director, Southern Adelaide Local Health Network
The success of the co-responder program at CALHN and NALHN is an example of how there are other ways we can help people receive the care they need without visiting a hospital.
Expanding this program to SALHN will help ensure the program is available across the metropolitan Adelaide area, meaning more consumers can access the service should they need it.