Assignment | Mental Health Problem in Australia

Running head: MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEM IN AUSTRALIA
MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEM IN AUSTRALIA
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author note

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Introduction
Suicide and self-harm constitute one of the most severe safety issues within the mental
health setting in Australia. The issue has gained and continues to gain considerable attention in
the health care sector because it directly indicates the catastrophic failure of the system. Such a
failure could result in the loss of confidence of the people from the mental health care system. In
Australia, the health ministers have agreed that suicide and self-harm within inpatient units
amount to sentinel incidence in health care and should be publicly reported. Suicide has an
impact on not just the person suffering from mental illness but also on families and friends along
with the community as well (Www1.health.gov.au, 2019). Apart from suicides occurring in the
inpatient units, these occurring while the health receivers are on leave or absent without leave or
on days following immediate discharge also are counted within suicides in a mental health care
setting.
People with mental health issues are at a greater risk of committing suicide or indulge in
self harm than those with physical illness, as Singhal et al. (2014) argue. The authors found in
their study that psychiatric illnesses such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorders, substance
abuse and schizophrenia have remarkably high rates for self harm and suicide. Tofthagen,
Talseth and Fagerström (2014) on the other hand, conducted study on the experiences of the
nurses looking after inpatients with self-harm tendency. The study found that mental health
nurses (MHNs) could promote patient care in mental health care setting to stop them from
harming self. Suicides within mental health care settings have been found to be preventable and
that occurred because of the negligence of the caretakers making omissions in care such as not
taking a follow-up of the patient or continuing care post-discharge. Some also argue that the
suicides that occur for periods of more than a year after the discharge from health care setting

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also amount to serious events especially when consumers are within the care of mental health
services of the community. These events are considered overall failure of the health care system
by the community members. Silmi et al. (2016) argue that understanding the ways to “confront,
intervene, and manage episodes of patient deliberate self-harm is extremely important, and can
be life-saving”. The authors suggest that in order to prevent deliberate self-harm in the metal
healthcare setting, previous episodes of the events have to be the main predictor.
These studies prove the fact that suicide and self-harm within the mental health setting is a
concerning issue of healthcare safety.
Background
The mental health issue is a widespread problem in Australia as recognized by the
Department of Health, Government of Australia. The problem has considerable effect at the
“personal, social and economic levels” in the country ("Department of Health | The magnitude of
the problem", 2019). According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reports, one in
every five people between the age of 16 ad 85 years suffer from any one form of mental illness
that might include anxiety, depression, mood disorders and substance use disorders amongst
others (Abs.gov.au, 2019). The rate of prevalence varies across the lifespan and it is the highest
during early adult years. The rate is highest in this age because this is the period when
individuals usually focus on establishing their careers and families and living an independent
life. Anxiety and affective disorders are the most prevalent in adults who are affected by it each
year. Around one-third of the population has more than one mental disorder. Known commonly
as “high prevalence” illnesses, such mental health disorders could include post-traumatic stress

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disorder (PTSD), bipolar disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and depression. All
these illnesses have different treatment requirements (Abs.gov.au, 2019).
According to the recent reports, child and adolescent males constituted the largest share
of population suffering from a mental health problem. They made up 16.3% of the total
population in the last one year particularly. Mental disorders could range from severe to episodic
in nature (Aihw.gov.au, 2019). In one of the recent reviews on mental health illness, it has been
found that around 615,000 people as per the 2017 population suffer from severe mental
disorders. This section of the population is not confined only to people with psychotic disorders
but also includes people having serious forms of anxiety and depression. Around one million
people constituting 4 to 6% of the population are found to suffer from moderate disorder while
about 2.5 million people are diagnosed with mild disorders. The Australian Burden of Disease
Study of 2015 revealed that 12% of the total burden of disease was due to the mental and
substance use disorders (Aihw.gov.au, 2019). This placed it fourth in the list of diseases with
most burdens after cancer, cardiovascular diseases and musculoskeletal conditions.
As evident from the above discussion, mental health in Australia is a significant problem,
which has not received adequate attention. Australia currently lacks “overarching mental health
architecture” as there is no structure or national design that could facilitate prevention and proper
treatment for people with mental illness.
The implications of health outcomes are the Suicide and self-harm, according to the
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. These are significant issues of public health in the
country and its gravity could be fathomed from the fact that more than 2000 Australians have
lost their lives owing to this since the mid-1980s. With the turn of the century, the rate increased