The initiative certainly had worthy aims - anyone 19 or younger could claim any number of counselling sessions immediately and their counsellor would be paid from the fund - but an apparent surge in demand last month took the charity by surprise and a limit of five sessions per client was imposed, followed rapidly by the total cancellation of sessions when the money ran out.
King has been an impressive champion of mental health for years. The former comedian has used his high-profile position to bring the issue centre stage and help destigmatise it - like others in similar positions have done, notably All Black great Sir John Kirwan. King's efforts have been rightly recognised in the Queen's Birthday Honours and with the title of New Zealander of the Year.
Mike King's I Am Hope promotion. Photo / Facebook
However, there is no glossing over the fund's abrupt stall. Youngsters in crisis, some as young as primary school age, who may be having their first experience of mental health support, who would have been slowly beginning to develop rapport and build trust with their counsellors and were likely starting to disclose a variety of abuse, trauma, grief, depression, anxiety and despair, have been suddenly cut off from that vital support at a time when they are most vulnerable.
Full credit to those mental health professionals who have said they will continue to see their clients for free, rather than let them go unmonitored until the fund hopefully gets its next injection - after the next Gumboot Day on April 3 next year. Of course, not every clinician has the capacity to subsidise clients.
King's passion is admirable, his frustration is evident, and the cost to his own mental health in trying to be all things to everyone is worrying. His confrontational style has helped achieve much, and has put him in frequent conflict with the Government and Ministry of Health, but his comments to clinicians ("If you're relying on Gumboot Friday money, to keep your business afloat, I think it's your business model that needs looking at, not the Gumboot Friday account," "Why can't you see them for nothing?" "Do something, if you're putting profit ahead of people then you're the problem.") are uncalled for. He is one of many concerned individuals, dedicated private professionals, public health workers, and charitable organisations trying to make a difference to people's lives - in an often thankless set-up.
If the ministry and the clinicians are fair game, then it is right to question the management of the fund, too. All are part of the picture. I Am Hope's chairman Mike Dawes has said there will be changes made to improve the fund next year, including more parameters on the spending. Certainly, avoiding a repeat of the current scenario is essential.
Primary school-aged children have reportedly been among those taking up counselling sessions through the Gumboot Fund. Photo / Getty Images
It appears the fund has been a victim of its own success. The ministry may try to help plug the funding gap, which would be the ideal outcome.
In the interim, the problems now facing the project sadly only serve to highlight the depth of the need for mental health support in our country.
The Government's recently announced funding injection - of $455 million through the Wellbeing Budget - is welcome. But will it be enough? No matter what money is put into services, it seems it barely scratches the surface. Yet the cost to individuals, our society and our economy of not investing in people's mental health is too great not to do everything possible.
Collectively and individually we must strive to front-foot the issue of mental health, provide support where we can, and help our youth build resilience from an early age.
Where to get help: • Lifeline: 0800 543 354 (available 24/7) • Suicide Crisis Helpline: 0508 828 865 (0508 TAUTOKO) (available 24/7) • Youthline: 0800 376 633 • Kidsline: 0800 543 754 (available 24/7) • Whatsup: 0800 942 8787 (1pm to 11pm) • Depression helpline: 0800 111 757 (available 24/7) • Rainbow Youth: (09) 376 4155 • Samaritans 0800 726 666 • If it is an emergency and you feel like you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
