Health Professionals
One of the key goals of beyondblue is to help health professionals work better with people with depression, anxiety and related disorders. There are many programs beyondblue has been involved in that have focused on health professionals.
Another key way beyondblue helps health professionals work with people with depression, anxiety and related disorders is by helping them to keep informed. Below are some key pieces of information that can assist health professionals stay informed so that they can keep helping people in the best way possible.
Better Access to Mental Health Care Initiative
The Australian Government's Better Access to Psychiatrists, Psychologists and General Practitioners through the Medicare Benefits Schedule initiative, announced in November 2006, replaced the "Better Outcomes in Mental Health Care" initiative (implemented in 2002), injecting a further $538 million for better Medicare funded access to mental health care. These initiatives provided key changes to Medicare aimed at:
- improving community access to quality primary mental health services
- providing better education and training for GPs and
- providing more support to GPs from allied health professionals and psychiatrists
These reforms are re-shaping the delivery of health care services for people with depression and related disorders, facilitating their access to treatment subsidised under Medicare.
Under the Better Access initiative, mental health care is now more accessible and affordable for people living with mental illness. A claim can now be made for a rebate for up to 12 (18 in exceptional circumstances) individual and/or 12 group based psychological treatment sessions within a calendar year. This involves a GP, psychiatrist or paediatrician referring a consumer to a psychologist, social worker, occupational therapist or a specially trained GP.
Mental Health Professional's Network
beyondblue has joined forces with the Mental Health Professional's Network (MHPN) to raise awareness of depression, anxiety and related disorders.
A co-branded flyer will be handed out to MHPN participants at every workshop across Australia. MHPN will also distribute an information pack promoting the many free resources available on the beyondblue website.
A range of support materials for consumers, carers and families are available and clinicians attending MHPN workshops and network meetings will be encouraged to join the beyondblue online health professional directory.
Download the flyer or visit www.mhpn.org.au for more information.
beyondblue Fact Sheets and Resources
beyondblue Fact sheet 24 - Help for depression under Medicare
This gives an overview of the Better Access to Psychiatrists, Psychologists and GPs through the MBS' initiative (commonly referred to as Better Access to Mental Health Care) focusing on who is eligible, what services are involved and what the cost is.
- To download click here.
- To order click here.
beyondblue Guide to the Management of Depression in Primary Care - A guide for health professionals (includes diagnosis and treatments)
To download click here
Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale
As part of the National Perinatal Depression Initiative, beyondblue has produced a series of infomation materials on the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) for use by health professionals.
Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale - A Guide for Health Professionals
To download click here
To order click here
Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale - A Checklist for Pregnant Women and New Mothers
To download click here
To order click here
Antenatal and Postnatal Depression - A Guide to management for health professionals (information card for each State/Territory)
Perinatal Depression and Anxiety - Evidence relating to infant cognitive and emotional development
When the Cowpat Hits the Windmill - a guide for staying mentally fit for students on rural placements
A booklet providing tips for health professional students on how to maintain good mental health.
To download, click here.
Antidepressants for the treatment of depression in children and young people (fact sheet for GPs)
beyondblue Education and Training
Young Minds
beyondblue: the national depression initiative and the Australian General Practice Network formed a partnership to develop this training program for GPs, practice staff and allied health professionals focusing on skills development in the diagnosis, management and treatment of high prevalence mental health disorders commonly occurring in young people. Young Minds - Treating Depression & Anxiety in Young People focuses on the identification, diagnosis and treatment of high prevalence mental health disorders occurring in young people between the ages of 12 and 24, including:
- Clinical information and practice guidelines on the epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment and management of common mental health problems experienced by young people;
- Outcomes measures commonly used in the diagnosis of these disorders;
- Treatment guidelines and fact sheets for primary care professionals;
- Information about how to develop a 'youth friendly' practice';
- Resources and support material to support patient psycho-education.
Young Minds is aimed at GPs, allied health professionals and other primary care workers who have an interest in youth mental health - prevention and early intervention.
Further information on accreditation is on the training website.
If you would like to access this training opportunity, please click the link below and follow the instructions: http://www.ebmcbt.com
To order beyondblue information click here.
Research reports
beyondblue Victorian Centre of Excellence (bbVCoE)
beyondblue's VCoE is involved in a number of research projects that focus on how health professionals can work better with people with depression, anxiety and related disorders. To read about the research findings click here
Programs
Many of our programs focus on helping professionals work better with people with depression, anxiety and related disorders. To find out more about these programs click here.
beyondblue and the Rural Health Education Foundation (RHEF) are collaborating to produce and distribute four accredited education programs for rural and remote health professionals. The one hour programs will be broadcast across the RHEF's satellite network of more than 660 sites and will also be broadcast free via video web streaming and audio podcasting at www.rhef.com.au/programs.
Premiering on June 29, Caring for Carers: Depression, Anxiety and the Impact of Caring is the second of four programs co-produced by beyondblue and the RHEF. The first program in the series, about Depression and anxiety in men with prostate cancer, premiered on May 18, and programs on mental health of young people and doctors in the workforce will follow in the second half of 2010.
Caring for Carers: Depression, Anxiety and the Impact of Caring
The program aims to assist health professionals to:
- Understand the impact of caring on physical and mental health
- Assist a carer to develop strategies for supporting a person with depression, anxiety or a related disorder
- Outline practical self-care ideas for carers and refer carers to appropriate carer support, counselling and respite services
Maintaining well-being: Depression and Anxiety in men with Prostate Cancer and their partners
Produced in collaboration with the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia, the program aims to assist health professionals to:
- identify what depression and anxiety have to do with prostate cancer
- provide information about how best to support families and carers of men with prostate cancer
DVDs
"Another Shade of Blue" - Depression in Older Australians
Produced in association with the Rural Health Education Foundation, this program assists health professionals to:
more effectively recognise, assess, treat and manage depression in older Australians
understand issues relating to older Indigenous and culturally and linguistically diverse Australians who are at risk of or experiencing depression
understand and reduce stigma associated with older people and depression
undertake informed prevention and early intervention strategies with older people.
Download Learning Guide to accompany this DVD.
To order this DVD and accompanying Learning Guide go to the order form here.
Suicide Assessment & Intervention - Men at Risk
An interactive CD-ROM that gives clinicians practical tips on conducting an assessment and responding to risk indicators. It includes a risk assessment guide that can be printed and used as an assessment tool.
To find out more go to www.menslineaus.org.au
Rural Health Education Foundation
www.rhef.com.au
The Foundation produces television-based health education for doctors, pharmacists, nurses and allied health professionals on a range of health related issues. All programs are accredited and are available via video webstreaming and audio podcasting via website as well as on DVD.
Clinical Guidelines
Treating Depression: the beyondblue guidelines for treating depression in primary care (2002) can be downloaded here
This article was included in the beyondblue "Depression and the Community" supplement of the Medical Journal of Australia in May 2002. A PDF version of this article is available from the above link.
Australian Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Guidelines for health professionals
Produced by the Australian Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health. The Guidelines are available to print at www.acpmh.unimelb.edu.au
Royal Australian & New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP) Clinical Guidelines
RANZCP has developed Consumer/Carer and Clinical versions of Clinical Practice Guidelines in:
- Anorexia nervosa;
- Bipolar disorder;
- Deliberate self harm (youth and adult);
- Depression;
- Panic disorder and agoraphobia.
These guidelines, updated in June 2005, can be downloaded from their website http://www.ranzcp.org/resources/clinical-practice-guidelines.html
Guidelines for the treatment of alcohol problems
The Department of Health and Ageing's guidelines on diagnosing and treating alcohol problems http://www.health.gov.au/internet/wcms/Publishing.nsf/Content/health-pubhlth-publicat-document-metadata-alcprobguide.htm
beyondblue has formed a committee of experts to update The National Health and Medical Research Council's 1997 Clinical Practice Guidelines for Depression in Young People. Click here to read more
Perinatal Guideline Development and Research (antenatal and postnatal) (2008-2010)
beyondblue is currently leading the development of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Clinical Practice Guidelines for Depression and Related Disorders in the Perinatal Period. A Guideline Expert Advisory Committee (GEAC) has been formed by beyondblue to develop these clinical practice guidelines. These Guidelines will serve to inform best practice in the detection, treatment and management of depression, anxiety disorders, bipolar disorder and postpartum psychosis in the perinatal period.
Guidelines for working with people who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing
http://www.health.qld.gov.au/pahospital/mentalhealth/docs/damh_guidelines.pdf (PDF, 1.4MB)
Indigenous mental health guidelines
The Mental Health First Aid Guidelines for Indigenous people have been developed by the Orygen Youth Health Research Centre with funding from beyondblue. They have been developed using the Delphi method, which is a systematic way of assessing the consensus of a panel of experts. The guidelines consist of first aid actions that have been rated as important or essential by an expert panels of professionals, consumers and carers.
With funding from beyondblue the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrist (RANZCP) developed a website to provide mental health professionals with information about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health issues aiming to improve life outcomes. The website is managed by RANCP and is accessible to all mental health professionals as well as members of the general public. It is an interactive and flexible website with reading materials and includes seven training modules that cover a range of mental heath issues across the lifespan and they address various fields of practice. Visit the website here.
Journal Articles
Medical Journal of Australia, 20 May 2002, Depression and the community
beyondblue funded a Medical Journal of Australia Supplement in May 2002.
This supplement looked at how depression is being treated in the community. Below is a list of the articles featured in the supplement and their authors.
Responding to the Australian experience of depression: the view of the Mental Health Council of Australia
John F McGrath
General practitioners play a vital role in providing information
Lara M Bishop
Responding to the Australian experience of depression
Ian B Hickie
Monitoring awareness of and attitudes to depression in Australia
Nicole J Highet, Ian B Hickie and Tracey A Davenport
Exploring the perspectives of people whose lives have been affected by depression
Bernard G McNair, Nicole J Highet, Ian B Hickie and Tracey A Davenport
Treating depression: the beyondblue guidelines for treating depression in primary care
Pete M Ellis and Don A R Smith
Effectiveness of complementary and self-help treatments for depression
Anthony F Jorm, Helen Christensen, Kathleen M Griffiths and Bryan Rodgers
The quality and accessibility of Australian depression sites on the World Wide Web
Kathleen M Griffiths and Helen Christensen
Medical Journal of Australia Supplement - 7 October 2002
Preventing Depression
Preventing depression: a challenge for the Australian community
Ian Hickie
Parenting interventions and the prevention of serious mental health problems in children
Matthew Sanders
Depression in young people: what causes it and can we prevent it?
Jane Burns, Gavin Andrews and Marianna Szabo
The prevention of mental disorders in young people
Gavin Andrews and David Wilkinson
To screen or not to screen - that is the question in perinatal depression
Anne Buist, Bryanne Barnett, Jeannette Milgrom, Sherryl Pope, John Condon, David Ellwood, Phillip Boyce, Marie-Paule Austin and Barbara Hayes
Coping with postnatal depression: a personal perspective
Lara Bishop
Potential for community programs to prevent depression in older people
Michael Bird and Ruth Parslow
Screening for depression in general practice and related medical settings
Ian Hickie, Tracey Davenport and Cristina Ricci
Improving Australians' depression literacy
Ruth Parslow and Anthony Jorm
The prevention of depression using the Internet
Helen Christensen and Kathleen Griffiths
Medical Journal of Australia Supplement - 4 October 2004
Depression: reducing the burden
Reducing the burden of depression: are we making progress in Australia?
Ian Hickie
How much more can we lose?": carer and family perspectives on living with a person with depression
Nicole Highet, Bernard McNair, Tracey Davenport and Ian Hickie
Suicide and mental health in rural, remote and metropolitan areas in Australia
Tanya Caldwell, Anthony Jorm and Keith Dear
General practitioners' response to depression and anxiety in the Australian community: a preliminary analysis
Ian Hickie, Jane Pirkis, Grant Blashki, Grace Groom and Tracey Davenport
Making new choices about antidepressants in Australia: the long view 1975-2002
Andrea Mant, Valerie Rendle, Wayne Hall, Philip Mitchell, William Montgomery, Peter McManus and Ian Hickie
Overdose in young people using heroin: associations with mental health, prescription drug use and personal circumstances
Jane Burns, Raymond Martyres, Danielle Clode and Jennifer Boldero
Effectiveness of complementary and self-help treatments for anxiety disorders
Anthony Jorm, Helen Christensen, Kathleen Griffiths, Ruth Parslow, Bryan Rodgers and Kelly Blewitt
Experience with treatment services for people with bipolar disorder
Nicole Highet, Bernard McNair, Marie Thompson, Tracey Davenport and Ian Hickie
A National Depression Index for Australia
Andrew Mackinnon, Anthony Jorm and Ian Hickie
Medical Journal of Australia Supplement June 2008 - Depression and Primary Care
Medical Journal of Australia Supplement April 2009 - Depression and anxiety with physical illness
Tackling Depression in Rural Australia
The special edition of Partyline includes information for health professionals on:
- beyondblue programs in rural and remote areas
- personal stories of recovery from depression
- the links between depression and physical illnesses such as heart disease and diabetes
- Indigenous mental health services
- managing depression in men, new mothers and young people
- Internet-based support for depression and anxiety.
To read click here.
Web links
Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP)
www.ranzcp.org
Information about psychiatry in Australia and New Zealand as well as links to more information about mental health.
Australian College of Mental Health Nurses
www.acmhn.org
Information about Mental Health Nursing and initiatives, academic resources and professional development of interest to Mental Health Nurses.
Australian Association of Occupational Therapists
www.ausot.com.au
Information on initiatives, resources and professional development opportunities for Occupational Therapists.
Australian General Practice Network
www.agpn.com.au
Information on initiatives, resources and professional development opportunities for General Practitioners.
Australian Association of Social Workers
www.aasw.asn.au
Information on initiatives, resources and professional development opportunities for Social Workers.
Australian Psychological Society
www.psychology.org.au
Information on initiatives, academic resources and professional development for psychologists.
Clinical Research Unit for Anxiety Disorders (CRUfAD)
www.crufad.org
Anxiety disorder related information for clinicians.
Black Dog Institute
www.blackdoginstitute.org.au
Professional development and resources for health professionals on mood disorders.
Australian Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health
www.acpmh.unimelb.edu.au
Trauma related research, policy advice, service development and education. ACPMH services help organisations and health professionals who work with people affected by traumatic events. Provides a range of publications and resources including Australian Guidelines for the Treatment of Adults with Acute Stress Disorder and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.
LIFE: Living Is For Everyone
www.livingisforeveryone.com.au
Resources, research, programs and funding opportunities to help reduce the rate of suicide in Australia.
External Resources
Toolkit - Mental Illness and recovery
To find out about care plans, publications, links and fact sheets to help service providers find new ways to help people with mental illness in the recovery process click here
AGPN Training for Mental Health and Substance Use Issues - The 'Can Do' Initiative
The 'Can Do' Initiative is a national government funded initiative run through the Australian General Practice Network (AGPN). It aims to help health professionals from a range of disciplines (eg. nurses, doctors, psychologists, social workers, community pharmacists and occupational therapists) to recognise and respond to people with both mental health and substance use issues.
The initiative comprises of two educational and training modules - one with a clinical focus, the other with a network training focus. Workshops are held face to face at the local level. An online interactive version of the clinical education is being developed.
For more information on 'Can Do' visit www.primarymentalhealth.com.au/CanDoInitiative
Keeping the blues away-a guide to reducing relapse of depression
University of Adelaide researcher Dr Cate Howell has developed a primary care treatment manual and CD called Keeping the Blues Away, aimed at reducing the severity and relapse of depression.
Keeping the Blues Away is a multi-faceted guide which includes psychological and social aspects combined into a 10-step program. A manual and relaxation CD are included in the resource kit. General practitioners in Adelaide have endorsed the program after trialling it with 100 patients. The book is written for patients to use, ideally guided by a GP or mental health professional. This resource is available for purchase from the Discipline of General Practice at the University of Adelaide. Phone 08 8303 3460 or email nicky.bennett@adelaide.edu.au or wendy.newbury@adelaide.edu.au
Brochure on the clinical care of people with ASD and PTSD
The Australian Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health (ACPMH) has developed a brochure to assist practitioners in providing best practice clinical care for people with Acute Stress Disorder (ASD) and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Go to http://www.acpmh.unimelb.edu.au/resources/resources-guidelines.html#1 to download. A free hard copy can be ordered here.
