At present most of our services are completely free

Most of our services are funded by the Canterbury District Health Board (CDHB). In addition we have grants from a range of other organisations, however Please donate to help us are also increasingly vital to our being able to continue to offer a full range of services. You can click on this link to see a full range of our funders.

At Unit 4, 357 Madras Street (beside the Heart Foundation), Christchurch, Canterbury, NEW ZEALAND.

We have labelled MHAPS carparks for visitors at the rear of the building and under cover in the drivethrough area between the units. There are also P60 parks on-site near the Salisbury St entrance, and there is often free parking nearby on Madras or Salisbury Streets. Bus lines that come nearby include the 60, 44, or 28, or the Blue Line.

No, regrettably we do not have sufficient funding to work outside of Christchurch. We can however offer you phone and email support if you live anywhere in Canterbury.

Usually no. However if you have a diagnosis such as agoraphobia or a form of social anxiety that prevents you from travelling then our peer support work team may be able to arrange an initial meeting with you either in your home or somewhere close by that you feel secure. What happens from there will then be agreed with you. If you have a Community Support Worker from another agency then that person may be able to bring you to our offices. If you live outside of Christchurch or further afield than Rangiora and Kaiapoi then we can offer you phone or email support.

We suggest you contact your region’s district health board, GP’s surgery or the GP’s Primary Health Organisation and ask them what is available in the way of services and support groups in your area.

We keep your information secure and we do not share it with other organisations even if asked to do so. The only exception would be if we were required by law to provide information about you because an government agency believed you were a risk to either yourself or some other person.

If you feel MHAPS has breached your privacy you can discuss your concerns with any person on our staff or ask to speak to a Manager. If you want to formalise your concerns into a complaint then any staff member can provide you with a form and talk to you about your rights to take a complaint. A
copy of our complaints form can also be found <a href=”https://mhaps.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Complaint-Form.doc” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer”>here</a> together with details about how your complaint is treated once it has been received.

If your privacy has been breached by another organisation then our staff can help you to access the other organisation’s complaint process.

If you feel you have not been appropriately helped by a MHAPS staff member you can discuss your concerns with any person on our staff or ask to speak to a Manager. If you want to formalise your concerns into a complaint then any staff member can provide you with a form and talk to you about your rights to take a complaint.

A copy of our complaints form can also be found here together with details about how your complaint is treated once it has been received. If you feel you have been treated badly by another organisation then our staff can help you to access the other organisation’s complaint process.

You can use the same feedback form <a href=”https://mhaps.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Complaint-Form.doc” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer”>here</a> as we provide for complaints. Your positive service experience will be fed back to the staff or service concerned and included in our internal reporting.

Without identifying you individually, it will form a part of our reporting back to our funders.

<p>All our advocates have had personal experience of mental health services, and can assist you in many situations where you may be struggling to speak for yourself. This may involve just having an advocate to talk to and plan with or you may need them to accompany you to a meeting and even to speak on your behalf.</p>

<p>Antidepressants are prescribed for both anxiety and depression. The type of antidepressant you are using will have been prescribed by taking into account a number of considerations. These include whether or not you have just anxiety and what, if any, part low mood or depression is playing in your unwellness. You can get more information about medications from your pharmacist or on the Medsafe website: – <a href=”http://www.medsafe.govt.nz/profs/datasheet/dsform.asp” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer”>medsafe.govt.nz/profs/datasheet/dsform.asp</a></p>

<p>We strongly suggest that you don’t stop taking your medication without consulting the prescriber. If you feel you no longer need your medication, or you feel conflicted by taking it, ask your doctor to review your prescription. If your doctor agrees that reducing or ending your medication is likely to be helpful then this can be done gradually, usually over a period of some weeks or months or years. Some people need to taper more slowly than others.</p>

Typically your GP (or other prescriber) will ask to see you again about 2 -3 weeks after providing the prescription and this is the opportunity to review its effectiveness. It is however up to you to make the appointment. It may however be that you have been taking medication for some time but now it doesn’t appear to be working as well. There may be factors influencing its effectiveness, such as a recent illness or new stresses that have affected you. We suggest you make an appointment with your doctor.

No, not at all. There are a wide range of well proven approaches to improving your mental health.
Things you can ask your GP about: free Brief Intervention counselling (up to five sessions); Green
Prescription, Health Improvement Practitioners (HIP), information about various forms of therapy or
counselling. Aside from your GP there are also organisations such as ours that offer <a href=”https://mhaps.org.nz/our-services/individual-support/”>individual peer support</a>, change <a href=”https://mhaps.org.nz/our-services/programmes/”>programmes</a>, <a href=”https://mhaps.org.nz/our-services/group-support/”>support group</a>s and advocacy.

Sound sleep is fundamental to good health and wellbeing. Worrying about not sleeping however can keep you awake longer. There are effective strategies to help you sleep better, one involves ‘sleep hygiene’ – practices that improve the quality of your sleeping environment. Other effective techniques include learning how to relax and breathe properly and the practice of Mindfulness. Good diet and exercise are also strongly linked to being able to achieve sound sleep. You can talk to your peer support worker here, attend one of our programmes or connect with another agency to support you to exercise and eat well. You can also talk to your GP who has access to a range of therapies.

As this can become a significant health issue quite quickly we suggest you begin by discussing your concerns about your drinking with your GP. You can also contact our peer support worker/advocates who specialise in helping people who have alcohol and addictions issues. They can have a
confidential chat with you and help you to make a plan to either reduce your consumption or to stop drinking altogether. The free and confidential <a href=”https://alcoholdrughelp.org.nz/helpline/” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer”>Alcohol Drug Helpline</a> is also available 24/7..

People sometimes use alcohol or non-prescription drugs either out of habit or to self-medicate away their feelings of anxiety or depression. Whilst this can appear to give some short term relief it can also lead to renewed and often stronger feelings of anxiety and depression. It may even leave you vulnerable to more serious mental health issues. We suggest you begin by discussing your your drinking or drug taking with your GP. You can also contact our peer support worker/advocates who specialise in helping people who have alcohol and addictions issues. They can have a confidential conversation with you and help you to make a plan to either reduce your consumption, or to stop it altogether.