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Title / Describe family/whānau and other natural supports of mental health and addiction service users
Level / 4 / Credits / 10
Purpose / People credited with this unit standard are able to describe: family/whānau and other natural supports of mental health and addiction service users; the impacts of mental health and addiction issues on family/whānau; and models for supporting family/whānau of mental health and addiction service users.
Classification / Health, Disability, and Aged Support > Mental Health and Addiction Support
Available grade / Achieved
Explanatory notes
1Legislation relevant to this unit standard includes:
Alcoholism and Drug Addiction Act 1966;
Children, Young Persons, and Their Families Act 1989;
Criminal Justice Act 1985;
Criminal Procedure (Mentally Impaired Persons) Act 2003;
Health and Disability Commissioner (Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers’ Rights) Regulations 1996;
Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003;
Intellectual Disability (Compulsory Care and Rehabilitation) Act 2003;
Mental Health (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Act 1992;
Misuse of Drugs Act 1975;
Privacy Act 1993;
Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988.
2New Zealand Standards relevant to this unit standard include:
NZS 8134.0:2008 Health and disability services Standards – Health and disability services (general) Standard;
NZS 8134.1:2008 Health and disability services Standards – Health and disability services (core) Standards;
NZS 8134.2:2008 Health and disability services Standards – Health and disability services (restraint minimisation and safe practice) Standards;
NZS 8134.3:2008Health and disability services Standards – Health and disability services (infection prevention and control) Standards.
All standards are available from
3Primary reference
Community Liaison Committee of the Royal Australian and New ZealandCollege of Psychiatrists. (2000). Involving families – Guidance notes: Guidance for involving families and whānau of mental health consumers/tangata whai ora in care, assessment and treatment processes. Wellington: Ministry of Health on behalf of the Royal College of Australian and New Zealand Psychiatrists, the Health Funding Authority, and the Ministry of Health; available at
4References
American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders – DSM-IV-TR (4th ed., Text revision). WashingtonDC: Author; available at
Camplin-Welch, V. (2007). Cross-cultural resource for health practitioners working with culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) clients. Auckland: Waitemata District Health Board and Refugees as Survivors New Zealand Trust, available by order from The content of the CD-ROM that accompanies this resource is also available from Resources/Cross-Cultural Resources.htm.
Durie, Mason. (2001). Mauri ora: The dynamics of Māori health. Auckland: Oxford: OxfordUniversity Press.
Durie, Mason. (2004). Understanding health and illness: Research at the interface between science and indigenous knowledge. International Journal of Epidemiology,33, 1138-1143, available at
Jackson, K. (2006). Fate, spirits and curses – Mental health and traditional beliefs in some refugee communities. Auckland: Auckland Refugees as Survivors, available by order from
Ministry of Health. (n.d.). Māori health:Addressing Māori health: Māori health models. Retrieved 17 May, 2011, from
Ministry of Health. (1998). Whāia te whanaungatanga: Oranga whānau – The wellbeing of whānau: The public health issues. Wellington: Author, available from
Ministry of Health. (1998). Guidelines for clinical risk assessment and management in mental health services. Wellington: Ministry of Health in partnership with the Health Funding Authority.
Ministry of Health. (2008). Let’s get real: Real Skills for people working in mental health and addiction. Wellington: Author; available at
Privacy Commissioner. (2011). On the record: A practical guide to health information privacy. (3rd ed.). Auckland: Office of the Privacy Commissioner; available at
Privacy Commissioner. (2008). Health Information Privacy Code 1994 – Incorporating amendments and including revised commentary (revised ed.). Auckland: Office of the Privacy Commissioner; available at
Te Pou o Te Whakaaro Nui, Le Va, Pasifika within Te Pou. (2009). Real Skills Plus Seitapu – Working with Pacific Peoples. Auckland: Author; available at
The Werry Centre. (2009). Real Skills Plus CAMHS: A competency framework for the infant, child and youth mental health and alcohol and other drug workforce. Auckland: Author; available at
5Support should aim to: maintain, improve, or restore a person’s independence and/or interdependence; utilise the person’s existing strengths; and, where possible, utilise the resources of the local community.
6Support provided for mental health and addiction service users may include natural supports.
7Candidates’ practice must reflect appropriate values, processes, and protocols in relation to working with Māori and Pacific peoples and/or people from other cultures, in a range of settings and environments.
8Definitions
Candidate refers to the person seeking credit for this unit standard.
Cultural kinship refers to identification with a culture through birth, adoption, or genealogy/whakapapa.
Culture/cultural refers to the totality of attitudes, behaviour, beliefs, values, customs, and practices that are characteristic of, or favoured or held in common by, a particular society or social, ethnic, or age grouping. Culture is formed from factors such as age, ethnicity, language, disability, gender, occupation, organisational background, immigrant or refugee status, institutional care, religious or spiritual beliefs, sexual orientation, and socio-economic status.
Mental health and addiction service user in the context of this unit standard refers to a person accessing services in a mental health or addiction setting. Service users may also be known as consumers, clients, patients, tūroro, or tangata whai ora in particular contexts and settings.
Natural supports refers to any assistance, relationships, or interactions provided to family/whānau of mental health and addiction service users by other families/whānau, friends, peers, co-workers, or community volunteers. In a specifically Māori context, natural supports may include but are not limited to: kaumātua, kuia, tohunga, whānau, iwi, and hapū.
Outcomes and evidence requirements
Outcome 1
Describe family/whānau and other natural supports of mental health and addiction service users.
Evidence requirements
1.1Family/whānau is described in terms of a range of family/whānau structures and cultural kinship concepts.
Rangefamily/whānau structures may include but are not limited to – nuclear, extended, adoptive, blended, gay or lesbian, single parent, family/whānau of origin;
evidence is required for three structures;
cultural kinship concepts of family/whānau may include but are not limited to – Māori, Pacific peoples, European/Pākehā;
evidence is required for two cultural kinship concepts.
1.2Family/whānau wellbeing is described in terms of key influences.
Rangekey influences may include but are not limited to – urbanisation, migration, refugee or migrant experiences, experience of traumatic events;
evidence is required of a minimum of two key influences.
1.3Family/whānau members’ cultural understanding of, and responses to, mental health and addiction issues are described in accordance with the primary reference and references.
Rangeevidence is required for the family/whānau of two mental health and addiction service users.
1.4The role that family/whānau and other natural supports can play in supporting recovery and preventing relapse of mental health and addiction service users is described in accordance with the primary reference and references.
Rangeevidence is required for the role of two families/whānau and two other natural supports.
1.5The benefits and challenges of working with family/whānau in supporting mental health and addiction service users are described in accordance with the primary reference and references.
Rangeevidence is required for two benefits and two challenges.
Outcome 2
Describe the impacts of mental health and addiction issues on family/whānau.
Rangeevidence is required for the family/whānau of two mental health and addiction service users.
Evidence requirements
2.1The impacts of mental health and addiction issues on family/whānau relationships and dynamics are described in accordance with the primary reference and references.
Rangeimpacts may include but are not limited to – anxiety, loss and grief, self-blame, attitudinal changes, behavioural changes, separation;
evidence is required for two different impacts on each family/whānau.
2.2The impacts of mental health and addiction issues on family/whānau are described in terms of family/whānau coping strategies.
Rangecoping strategies may include but are not limited to – engagement, tolerance, withdrawal;
evidence is required for one coping strategy for each family/whānau.
2.3The impacts of mental health and addiction issues on family/whānau are described in terms of family/whānau members’ support needs when confronted with mental health and addiction issues.
Rangesupport needs may include but are not limited to – cultural, emotional, learning, physical, social, spiritual, housing, financial, employment, relationships, transport;
evidence is required for two different support needs for each family/whānau.
Outcome 3
Describe models for supporting family/whānau of mental health and addiction service users.
Rangemodels include but are not limited to – strengths-based and recovery-based models, stress-coping model, family disease model, Fonofale, Pōwhiri Poutama, Te Whare Tapa Whā, Te Wheke, Whānau Ora, those adopted by the candidate’s organisation.
Evidence requirements
3.1Models for supporting family/whānau of mental health and addiction service users are described.
Rangedescription includes but is not limited to – rationale, objectives, applicability, context;
evidence is required for two models that support family/whānau from different cultures.
Planned review date / 31 December 2016Status information and last date for assessment for superseded versions
Process / Version / Date / Last Date for AssessmentRegistration / 1 / 21 July 2011 / N/A
Revision / 2 / 17 May 2012 / N/A
Consent and Moderation Requirements (CMR) reference / 0024
This CMR can be accessed at
Please note
Providers must be granted consent to assess against standards (accredited) by NZQA, before they can report credits from assessment against unit standards or deliver courses of study leading to that assessment.
Industry Training Organisations must be granted consent to assess against standards by NZQA before they can register credits from assessment against unit standards.
Providers and Industry Training Organisations, which have been granted consent and which are assessing against unit standards must engage with the moderation system that applies to those standards.
Requirements for consent to assess and an outline of the moderation system that applies to this standard are outlined in the Consent and Moderation Requirements (CMR). The CMR also includes useful information about special requirements for organisations wishing to develop education and training programmes, such as minimum qualifications for tutors and assessors, and special resource requirements.
Comments on this unit standard
Please contact the Community Support Services ITO Limited if you wish to suggest changes to the content of this unit standard.
Community Support Services ITO LimitedSSB Code 101814 / New Zealand Qualifications Authority 2018