National MP Shane Reti has been accused of using self-harm data as a "political battering ram" over his article featuring "misleading" mental health graphs.
NZME-owned newspaper The Northern Advocate published a column by the Whangārei list MP and health spokesperson headlined "No covid victory parade for mental health".
The article suggested New Zealanders should not celebrate the low COVID-19 death toll because the effect of lockdowns on mental health was not yet clear.
Two graphs were featured, showing a rise in hospital admissions for self-harm during COVID-19, which the article said were provided by Health Minister Andrew Little.
"The [Government] trumpets only 65 deaths means we have won. No we haven't. Check out intentional self harm admissions," Reti wrote on Twitter.
But the article was pulled after the graphs were called into question.
Newsroom journalist Marc Daalder assumed the graphs were based on a written Parliamentary question, which showed the average monthly hospitalisation rate for self-harm had actually dropped after March 2020.
Daalder posted on Twitter his own graphs generated from the data he assumed Reti had obtained and the trend lines travelled up and down while the trend lines in Reti's graphs moved in a straight direction.
Data journalist Chris McDowall, a specialist multimedia data journalist at the NZ Herald, described the graphs as "misleading".
Reti later told Stuff he obtained the information via Official Information Act request, not the written Parliamentary questions.
"What's fascinating is that everyone assumes the dataset is my written Parliamentary question. I didn't want to feed the hysteria by commenting on it," Reti told Stuff.
"Maybe we should just bring it down for the moment and recheck it, and re-look at it."
The Northern Advocate has removed the article from the newspaper's website until the data is clarified. In a clarification article published on Monday, the paper said it "regrets any confusion the article may have caused".
The Mental Health Foundation was not impressed. CEO Shaun Robinson wrote to Dr Reti, with National leader Christopher and mental health spokesperson Matt Doocey copied in, to express his outrage.
"The Mental Health Foundation is deeply concerned with your analysis of self-harm data published in the Northern Advocate today. We join others in expressing disappointment in your interpretation of the data and of the column itself," Robinson wrote.
"The truth is, there is no good, robust national epidemiological data that would give us insight into youth self-harm trends that would allow us to draw the kinds of conclusions you came to in your column. As a medical professional we would expect that you would be aware of this.
"Children's mental health crises are issues of shared national concern. They should never be used as political battering rams.
"You have great mana in your community, and you are able to communicate with vulnerable people in a way most others cannot. But your column highlighted problems without solutions; it was intended to incite panic and despair. It was targeted at a group of people who are vulnerable and can only have inspired hopelessness in them.
"We ask that you consider using your position instead to help inform parents and whānau of the signs their young people are self-harming, what to do if they spot those signs, how to have a kōrero with them and how to get help."
Robinson said what's needed is "awhi and aroha", not "further division".
National Party deputy leader Nicola Willis has come to Dr Reti's defence. When asked on Tuesday if he had misrepresented the data, she said: "No."
"I understand Shane made the decision to withdraw that column. You'll be aware that the Mental Health Foundation has written to Shane," she told reporters ahead of National's caucus meeting at Parliament.
"He and Matt Doocey have written back to the foundation this morning to say they would like to meet with them to discuss their concerns.
"What we all have in common is a desire to see reduced mental health stress for New Zealanders. That's what Shane and Matt want and they'd love to work with the Mental Health Foundation to look at how they can support that."
Dr Reti told Newshub: "I have written back to the Mental Health Foundation this morning and accepted their invitation to meet with them, alongside National's Mental Health spokesperson Matt Doocey. Ultimately we all share the same goal, which is to improve mental health outcomes in New Zealand."
