I Am Hope founder Mike King says the Ministry of Health could be the key to helping his charity's Gumboot Friday account after money was exhausted following an unpredicted surge in applications for its services.
"I have been speaking to the Ministry of Health, they will be talking to our CEO about putting some money into the Gumboot Friday account so we can continue this amazing programme," he told Newshub on Wednesday afternoon.
"They can see the benefit of it, we can see the benefit of it."
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No specifics have been announced but King says any help is a "really great idea".
A Ministry of Health spokesperson told Newshub although it has not yet agreed to any funding for the Key to Life Charitable Trust - the organisation housing King's initiatives - it has been in touch and is working with them to ensure young people in need continue to be supported.
On Wednesday, King dismissed backlash over his Gumboot Friday Fund exhausting its reserve in less than six months, believing it proves the service is necessary to vulnerable young people.
After Kiwis collectively raised $1.3 million in April this year for Gumboot Friday - an annual event held to raise money to provide free counselling to under 18s - the scheme operated at an average spend of $120,000 a month.
In September, that figure climbed to $940,000 worth of counselling appointments, triggering criticism from staff working on the frontline who claimed the future funding was "suddenly ripped away" and an email ordered treatment programmes to be immediately put on hold.
On Wednesday morning, King shamed counsellors who are saying his organisation has let people down and informed the whole way through about how much money was in the fund.
"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," he said.
"Why can't you see them for nothing? If you've got someone who is suicidal in desperate need of help, why can't you give one session, two sessions, three sessions to that person to get them to a better place."
"Do something, if you're putting profit ahead of people then you're the problem."
Christchurch counsellor Cherin Abdelaal-Selim told RNZ she was forced to contact clients to let them know funding had been cut.
"So they had a choice of for those who could afford it, which most couldn't, they could continue or we had to stop," she said.
King admits it was a surprise to have a jump in demand of more than seven times but says this reflects the substantial urgency for immediate access to counselling that the Gumboot Fund allows.
"From my understanding, it seems GPs were referring people to our fund because we had a quicker response time than funded services," he told Newshub.
King says that on average, a person can expect to receive a session within one week via services paid for by Gumboot Friday's fund. He claims relying on Government funded-services can take anything between six to 26 weeks.
He says no one could have predicted that the steady average would skyrocket in that last month.
"When we first came out people said we were raising other people's expectations and we were going to let people down. Well, we provided over 24,000 sessions and if people think that we've done a bad job, well that's on them, that's not on us.
"Rather than people sticking the boot into us, what I think we should be doing, is asking the more serious question, 'what's going on with funded services'?"
Since launching, the Gumboot Friday fund has seen the greatest up-take with primary school kids, which King says other agencies may have seen as a problem.
"It's not a problem, all I see is potential in this. If kids are going to get counselling at primary school for a little problem, that problem doesn't become a big problem, and that problem doesn't become a suicidal thought."
Ministry of Health said its primary concern is that all New Zealanders in need of support services are able to access mental health and addiction services when they need them.
"No one should feel like there isn’t an option of support if they need help."
Not all of the appointments that have received Gumboot Friday funding have been met, King says. Allowances are allocated at five sessions per patient at a time - any appointments that weren't had, that money goes back into the account.
It won't be until mid-November until he and organisers know how many weren't taken up when the availability expires.
"Next year, our whole message will be, this is a necessary service, so what can we all do to provide with an opportunity to help young kids? We can all give two lattes, and two hamburger instead."
Newshub.
