Service development

Wise is positioned to identify and develop new services.

1. Create a new approach to providing non-clinical services for women experiencing stress, trauma or depression.  

The Monastery opened in 2006. A first in New Zealand, The Monastery offers a live-in five-day therapeutic programme, for up to five people at a time. Guests are pampered, well-fed, have plenty of rest, and can take advantage of expert help from wellness professionals with a range of healing skills. Until February 2011, The Monastery was a women-only retreat; however after the devastating earthquake in Christchurch in February 2011, the Wise Group opened The Monastery's heart and doors to women, men and families from Canterbury. It is currently providing free five-night retreats to people from Canterbury who have experienced trauma and suffering as a result of the earthquake. This initiative will continue until June 2012. See The Monastery website for more information.

2. Create a new model of community-based services, where ‘any door is the right door'.

For people experiencing difficulty with both mental health and addictions, ‘any door is the right door' to access support and treatment. In 2011, Pathways, the Wise Group's community mental health service provider, formed a partnership with national addictions provider CareNZ - and began delivering a ground-breaking new model of community-based services in Wairarapa. For the first time in New Zealand, support and treatment for mental health and addictions became available from a single point in the community.