In the year ending September 30, 2013, 1664 young people were treated by addiction service providers including Rubicon, the district health board and agencies such as Ngati Hine.
Of those young clients, 907 were Maori youth and 757 were non-Maori. In 2012, there were 1499 young clients, 11 per cent less than in 2013. The figures also show an increase in uptake from Maori, with an additional 119 Maori youths seeking help last year.
The district health board said an increase in collaborative work, "largely due to the interagency groups established to minimise the risk of suicide contagion amongst youth" might be behind the increase.
The additional funding will extend Rubicon's presence in high schools and provide additional psychology resources.
Northland District Health Board general manager of mental health services, Sue Wyeth said combining the youth mental health and addiction services would mean a more cohesive approach.
"People with co-existing mental health and substance-use problems often need to navigate both mental health and addiction services."
All staff working in mental health and addiction services for young people in Whangarei will be based at the Rubicon centre in Bank St. In the Far North, staff will work at a villa adjacent to Kaitaia Hospital.
