Mental Health Advocacy Service (MHAS) - Youth Advocate

The Mental Health Advocacy Service (MHAS) provides Youth Advocates to support and protect the rights of:

• involuntary inpatients
• young people on Community Treatment Orders (CTO) 
• young people referred for compulsory examination by a psychiatrist (including in EDs and prisons)
• young people under 18 years who are receiving treatment or seeking admission to a public hospital or authorised mental health ward
• young people under 18 years who have been assisted by an Advocate in the past 6 months and are receiving mental health treatment in a community mental health service
• young people subject to Hospital Orders or Custody Orders, and
• residents of private psychiatric hostels.

MHAS is established under the Mental Health Act 2014, as a free service, independent from hospitals and mental health services. Advocates contact people or visit them in hospital and have powers to ask questions which staff must answer, look at medical files, attend treating team meetings, raise complaints and represent people in Mental Health Tribunal hearings and at Health and Disability Services Complaints Office (HaDSCO).

Requests for assistance can be made by phone to MHAS on 08 6234 6300 and messages on the answering machine are monitored over weekends.