Mental health support services in Western Sydney

Patients are supported by peer workers – people with a lived experience of mental illness and distress. Once they make significant progress in their own recovery, peer workers positively assist patients’ recovery.

Peer workers offer:

• Respect, shared responsibility, and a mutual agreement of what is helpful support
• Patient advocacy - supporting your human rights, right to services, and right to information
• Support and empowerment – to speak up and express your needs (or do so on your behalf, with your permission)
• A listening ear – so you can talk about your concerns and ask questions about services that might assist in your recovery.

A mental health test or assessment is available to assess your emotional wellbeing via a series of questions, and also a physical examination.

A mental health assessment is designed to:

• Diagnose conditions such as depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, postnatal depression, eating disorders, and psychotic illnesses
• Differentiate between mental illness and physical health problems.

A chaplain’s role is to provide spiritual guidance, counselling, and solace to people of all ages, backgrounds, and belief systems.

They can answer faith-based questions and provide spiritual guidance to patients and staff members during times of hardship.

Chaplains also perform religious ceremonies, prayer, and meditation services for people in group settings or individually, depending on your needs. 

This program focuses on working with people with a mental illness and supporting their families and carers. This partnership is pivotal to achieving strong outcomes in mental health care.

This includes, where possible, having family and carers assist in mental health care and recovery, and providing them with appropriate information, delivered in a way in which they can understand it.

These programs are delivered in partnership with Parramatta Mission and the Transcultural Mental Health Centre to provide a range of services that support relatives, carers, and families.

This volunteer service is available to relatives and designated carers who have been asked to attend Mental Health Review Tribunal (MHRT) or inquiry hearings. 

The Mental Health Review Tribunal is a specialist quasi-judicial body established under the Mental Health Act 2007. It has a wide range of powers that enable it to conduct mental health inquiries, make and review orders, and to hear some appeals about the treatment and care of people with a mental illness.

Volunteers will greet you and make sure you arrive at your MHRT hearing on time. They will also liaise with the Tribunal Coordinator once you arrive at the tribunal waiting room and can answer any questions you have before or after the hearing.

At Transcultural Mental Health Centre we work with people from diverse communities – both culturally and language-based, health professionals, and partner organisations across NSW to support good mental health.

This service complements the Western Sydney Mental Health Services (hospital and community) and provides enhanced pathways to care for culturally and linguistically diverse communities.

TMHC is an NSW Health state-wide service hosted within the Western Sydney Local Health District.

GambleAware is a statewide service that works with mainstream services to assist problem gamblers from diverse communities in NSW, and their families, by providing quality and accessible counselling.

Confidential assistance is available to gamblers and their families in more than 30 languages at locations across NSW. Assistance includes free telephone counselling, information, advice, and referral and one-to-one counselling in a preferred language.

NDIS stands for the National Disability Insurance Agency. It is the national scheme for people with disability, providing funding directly to individuals.

The NDIS can provide information and connections to local services to anyone who has a disability. Service connections include:

• doctors
• sporting clubs
• support groups
• libraries
• schools.

The NDIS can also provide information about the support that is available from each state and territory government.

Find out more information on the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIS). 

Medicare gives all Australians, and some people from overseas, a wide range of health and hospital services at no (or low) cost. 

Medicare cards are issued to people enrolled in Medicare. You can find registration information at the front of the Medicare enrolment form at the Department of Human Services. 

You can find out how to register for Medicare account. 

You can use your Medicare card when:

• Making a Medicare claim for a paid or unpaid doctor's account
• Visiting a doctor
• Receiving treatment as a public patient in a public hospital
• Filling a Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) prescription at a pharmacy

Find more information from Medicare. 

NSW Communities and Justice can help you to:

• find or keep your housing
• apply for private rental assistance or social housing
• understand your rights and responsibilities as a tenant
• request help with a property
• find out more about management transfers.

For more information, visit the Department of Communities and Justice. 

Centrelink provides social security payments and services to Australians such as disability support, rent assistance and carer payments.

Find more information on Centrelink. 

Jobseeker

JobSeeker is financial help for people between the ages of 22 and being eligible to receive the Age Pension, who are looking for work. 

Find more information on Jobseeker. 

Multicultural NSW provides high-quality, professional, and efficient interpreting and translation services.

Their fully accredited interpreters speak more than 100 languages, and our translation services are available across more than 100 Service NSW centres in NSW.

Find out more information at Multicultural NSW.