National Mental Health Policy - National Health Mission (PDF)
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Added on 2021-05-31
National Mental Health Policy - National Health Mission (PDF)
Added on 2021-05-31
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Running head: NATIONAL MENTAL HEALTH POLICY 2008National Mental Health Policy 2008Name of the StudentName of the UniversityAuthor note
1NATIONAL MENTAL HEALTH POLICY 2008IntroductionMental health issues indirectly or directly affect the Australians at some stages in theirlives. There is a strong link between ageing and health problems that includes physical andmental illness. The mental health issues are quite common where about 45% of them areexperiencing recurrent or severe illness that has influenced the older Australians, their familymembers and carers (Slade, Teesson and Burgess 2009). According to Australian Institute ofHealth and Welfare (AIHW) 2015, about 8.5 million people were affected by mental disordersand one in five (20%) had experienced mental illness (Slade et al. 2009). There is lack ofeffective and appropriate timely access to treatment and non-clinical mental health services thatis important for healthy ageing (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2012). As a result, itis affecting their ability to live independently and complicating the picture of older people’smental health in Australia. Therefore, policy implementation is important for prevention, earlydetection and delivery of appropriate mental health services to older Australians. Australian government has made guidelines and policies to reform mental healthcondition for their people. Among these, The National Mental Health Policy 2008 was developedwith a strategic vision to promote mental health and well-being, prevention of mental healthproblems development and illness (Health.gov.au 2018). It is also aimed at reducing the impactof mental illness like stigmatization and promoting recovery of older Australians. Furthermore,this existing policy assures to protect the rights of the people with mental illness and disorders sothat they are able to participate in society meaningfully (Health.gov.au 2018). Therefore, thispolicy is envisioned to reform the mental health system providing connected and seamless care,recovery-oriented while supporting older people to participate in community activities to theirfull potential (Health.gov.au 2018).
2NATIONAL MENTAL HEALTH POLICY 2008Overview The National Mental Health Policy 2008 was developed to promote mental well-being,prevention, early detection and recovery among the older Australians. This policy recognizes thatlife stages like old age are associated with increased mental health risk and those who areexperiencing mental illness. This policy has a renewed approach towards mental health whereolder Australians should have better access to mental health services, improved service deliveryand accountable and more robust legislation (Groom, Hickie and Davenport 2003). This policygreatly reaffirms good mental health among older people and not just reduction or absence ofmental illness in the community. The services should greatly meet the clinical needs of the olderpeople so that they actively participate in their own care promoting collaboration andparticipation in the society (Health.gov.au 2018). This policy has a positive impact on the older people. Mental health problems make olderpeople vulnerable to human rights violation and subjected to discrimination and stigma. Thispolicy is directed to de-stigmatization and assisting older Australians to become independent,emotionally resilient so that they cope with their negative experiences and participate fully intheir community activities. The policy is also aimed at reducing the risk of suicide by minimizingthe risk factors and improving resistance to mental illness and problems. It also helps to createawareness by promoting mental health well-being related to prevention and recovery of mentalillness among aged population in Australia (Health.gov.au 2018). Improvement of current policy Over the past decade, Australian government has developed series of mental healthstrategies and plans; however, there is critical gap in literature and knowledge for mental illness,
3NATIONAL MENTAL HEALTH POLICY 2008policy planning and practice. There is also lack of accountability and limited healthcare systemsdata along with issues of policy monitoring and evaluation. According to Grace et al. (2015) inAustralia, the mental health reform that was implemented has received unprecedented attentionin levels: regulation, organization, community education, payment and finance. Although,national mental health policy 2008 is a whole government approach enabling recovery, earlyintervention prioritization and full access to mental health services, this policy is a failure ofimplementation and not a failure of policy. The levelers include poor administration,accountability, lack of government commitment and failure to achieve quality delivery of mentalhealth services in the Australian community (Grace et al. 2015). Therefore, the current policyneeds to acknowledge and direct major areas like rights and responsibilities of people withmental illness, mental health promotion and awareness, prevention of mental health problemsand suicide risk reduction, early intervention, access to right care, participation and socialinclusion. Workforce issues have gained greater prominence in terms of innovation, research andsustainability. Since the inception of this policy, it is recognized as a major challenge as therecruitment and retention of workers is of great concern. Despite persistent effort, thedistribution and supply of mental health professionals in various areas of community like oldaged care homes is scarce and as a result, there is lack of broad approach towards addressing ofmental health problems of older Australians (Clinton and Hazelton 2000). There is lack ofadequate training among the professionals in providing quality mental health services to theolder Australians. To address the issue of workforce, appropriate training of the professionals in the mentalhealth workforce is of paramount importance. This sort of training must equip education
4NATIONAL MENTAL HEALTH POLICY 2008opportunities that can be helpful in attracting and retaining sufficient qualified workers andongoing education options. This workforce should be trained in promoting prevention of mentalhealth issues, early intervention, detection and recovery. Adequate delivery of services that canbe helpful in meeting the needs of older people with mental health issues remains a challengeregardless of their living conditions (Burgess et al. 2012). The improvement in the current policycan be made through amendments in the existing policy and updating with new information. Thechanges made in the existing policy will focus on the early detection, recovery and qualitymental health service delivery by skilled mental health professionals having proper knowledgeand awareness about mental health issues among older Australians. Executive staffs help topromote mental health well-being among the older Australians will review the new policy draftwith proper evaluation and monitoring of changes in the policy. Furthermore, the final policywill be updated and released that can reduce the prevalence and impact of mental healthconditions among the older people in Australia. Therefore, the identification of mental healthrisk factors, promotion of mental health well-being, prevention, early detection and recovery aresearched through literature review in the subsequent section. Literature reviewLiterature reviewDatabaseMedLinePubMedKey termsMental health policy Mental health among olderpeopleRisk factors for older peopleAvailable resultsMeta-analysisGovernment reports Journal articles
5NATIONAL MENTAL HEALTH POLICY 2008Identification of risk factorsThe Australian population is ageing and they face mental and physical health challengesthat need proper recognition. Older population experience life stressors like decline in functionalability, loss in capacities and independence. The risk factors for mental health issues also includeneurological disorders like anxiety and depression along with physical illness and mental traumaas outlined by World Health Organization 2012. There is reduction in mobility, frailty, chronicpain and other health problems that require aged long-term care. Furthermore, there are severalconditions like retirement, bereavement and decline in socio-economic status that increases therisk for mental health problems among the older population. These factors result in loneliness,isolation and psychological distress among the older people demanding long-term mentalhealthcare (Holt-Lunstad et al. 2015). According to Masi et al. (2011), risk factor for mental health issues among older peopleis elder abuse like neglect, abandonment and severe losses of respect and dignity. Elder abusenot only causes physical agony, but also causes long lasting emotional and psychologicalconsequences like anxiety and depression. The knowledge regarding identification of risk factorscan be helpful in preventing the older people from severe mental health issues. The identificationof mental health risk factors can be helpful in recognizing the people at risk of developing mentalhealth issues. The National Mental Health Policy highlights the need for identification of mentalhealth risk factors among older people through early and preventative intervention activities.According to Corrigan et al. (2012), the community awareness by mental health professionalsthrough mental health promotion can help to reduce discrimination and stigma experienced byolder people. It can also be helpful in increasing opportunities for early intervention andprevention as updated by the policy. This is one of the main parts of the existing policy as it
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