Mental illness, or mental disorders are one of the major public health concerns in Australia. This article discusses the prevalence of mental health issues in Australia, their impact, and the need for interventions to minimize the associated risks.
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1 Public Health Condition in Australia
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2 Mental Health as a public health concern Mental illness, or mental disorders are one of the major public health concerns in Australia. Since issues with mental health issues are extremely common in Australian population, one in every five Australians which means about 4.8 million people suffer from mental health issues as in surveyed in the year 2017-18. The most prevalent mental health conditions are anxiety, depression and substance use disorders (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2018). The impact of mental health issues Australia has been facing the risk of mental health disorders and its associated risks from a prolonged period of time. It has been observed that 20% of adults and 14% of children and young people are likely to experience mental illness in any given year (Australian Government, 2018a). The issues related to mental health not only affects individuals, families and carers, but has influenced the society as a whole. The increasing numbers of Mental Health issues indicate that nearly half of Australians experience issues related to mental illness. Mental health illness can range from mild disorders prolonged illness that may lead to serious disability. The impact of Mental Health issues can affect people's behavior, thoughts and their perception of the world around them. Untreated and prolonged mental illness can increase the risk of distress by affecting the person's ability to function in their daily lives (Australian Government, 2018b). The current mental health system in Australia is characterized by gaps in services which requires adequate funding for number of Mental Health programs to support the issue. Figure 1: Mental health issues scenario
3 Source: (Mental Health Australia, 2018) Mental health issues in adults and youth The National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing of 2007 has identified that 45% adults between the age 16 to 85 means nearly 8.6 million people experience common mental health issues (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2018b). Anxiety disorders contribute to a common type of mental illness which has engulfed about 14.4% of Australian adults. The immediate effects such as depression and use of alcohol and tobacco have taken a toll Australians in the last few years. Young people are more prone to mental illness leading to 13.9% young people between the ages 4 to 17 facing the issue. Since the first National Child and Adolescent survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing was conducted has shown a rise in prevalence of major depressive disorders among young people. Approximately 47% of the population has been diagnosed with Schizophrenia and other psychotic illness were people below the age of 25 suffered more. Mental health issues have contributed to the burden of disease in Australia leading to issues like Comorbid illness impacting least one adult out of 11.7% of adults facing mental disorders. Figure 2: Mental Health issues in Australians Source: (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2018b)
4 Mental health as per region Majority of mental health disorders have been prevalent within Australians living in rural and remote areas experience the same rate of issues as people living in cities. The shows the inadequate social and emotional well-being programs for mental health patients in Australia. This has led to majority of death from suicide and self-harm injuries among people between ages 0-74 years in remote areas of Australia. As per the observations, the Aboriginals are likely to die from mental illness 1.2 times than non-indigenous Australians (Parliament of Australia, 2018). Due to low rates of access to mental health facilities, people living in the remote areas forecast high rate of suicide. Figure 3: Common issues of death due to mental illness Source: (Parliament of Australia, 2018) Justification Mental health is the most prevalent issues affecting more than 4 million people of the entire population in Australia. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, mental health issues strongly influence psychotic disorders, depression and alcohol use among adults and young people. The conditions among people have worsened due to drinking alcohol and
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5 smoking tobacco contributing to high risks of chronic conditions in Australia. Since mental disorders do not come with warning signs, it is important for people to identifying underlying symptoms. Therefore it can be justify that Australia should consider mental health issues as a national concern and accordingly provide interventions to minimize the risk associated with this condition.
6 Reference List Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2018a.National Health Survey: First Results, 2017-18. [online] Available at: <http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4364.0.55.001> [Accessed 10 April 2019] Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2018b.National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing: SummaryofResults,2007.[online]Availableat: <http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4326.0Main+Features32007? OpenDocument>[Accessed 10 April 2019] Australian Government, 2018.Mental health services in brief 2018.[online] Available at: < https://www.aihw.gov.au/getmedia/0e102c2f-694b-4949-84fb-e5db1c941a58/aihw-hse- 211.pdf.aspx?inline=true> [Accessed 10 April 2019] AustralianGovernment,2018b.AIHWmediareleases.[online]Availableat: <https://www.aihw.gov.au/news-media/media-releases/2018/june/our-health-report-card-is-in- and-here-s-what-we-ca> [Accessed 10 April 2019] Mental Health Australia, 2018.Australia’s Mental and Physical Health Report Card.[online] Availableat:<https://1010.org.au/news/australias-mental-and-physical-health-report-card/> [Accessed 10 April 2019] Parliament of Australia, 2018.Accessibility and quality of mental health services in rural and remoteAustralia.[online]Availableat: <https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Community_Affairs/ MentalHealthServices/Report> [Accessed 10 April 2019]