2024 National Carer Survey now open! Every two years, Carers NSW and the State and Territory Carer Organisations conduct the National Carer Survey, a comprehensive Survey to better understand what Australia’s carers want and need. The Survey informs research, advocacy, and service design for carers across Australia.
The 2024 National Carer Survey is now open at nationalcarersurvey.com.au.
Participants can enter a draw to win one of 24 gift vouchers valued at $200 (3 vouchers per state/territory).
If you would prefer to complete the Survey on paper, please contact the Carers NSW Research team at research@carersnsw.org.au or on 02 9280 4744 and you will be sent a printed questionnaire including a reply-paid envelope.
The Survey is funded by the NSW Government and led by Carers NSW, with the support of the Carer Organisations in each state and territory of Australia. For more information including the survey impact, please visit www.carersnsw.org.au/about-us/our-research/carer-survey. The Survey closes 31 July 2024. Mental health measures in the Federal Budget The recently announced 2024/25 Federal Budget has allocated $361 million to new mental health initiatives. This includes funding for a national low-intensity digital mental health service and the rebranding and expansion of the clinical capacity of Medicare Mental Health Centres (currently Head to Health). The budget also introduces initiatives to address broader issues such as the rising cost of living and housing pressures.
While we are pleased to see these commitments and eager to see them materialise effectively, we are disappointed by the lack of investment in long-term, sustainable mental health reform that is needed to meet the nation's growing demand.
You can read more details about the Federal Budget in Mental Health Australia's overview of the budget.
What the Federal Budget means for carers In our last newsletter, we highlighted the upcoming changes to the Carer Payment as part of the Federal Budget. These changes have now been officially announced and include:
- An allocation of $18.6 million to increase flexibility for Carer Payment recipients, allowing carers to engage in work, study, and volunteer activities.
- A freeze on the maximum cost of a Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) prescription for one year, with an investment of $318 million.
- The provision of an additional 24,100 aged care Home Care Packages, with a budget of $531.4 million.
To learn more about how these budget commitments may affect you or someone you care for, head over to the Carers Australia factsheets here.
Audit report reveals gaps in the ACT’s youth mental health servicesThe Auditor-General’s report into the ACT’s youth mental health services reveals a significant increase in demand for services from the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS), which caters to under-18s experiencing moderate to severe mental health difficulties. This increase is marked by a 12% rise in demand for CAMHS and a 10% surge in under-18s presenting to emergency departments with mental health concerns.
The report identifies noticeable gaps in the system, with no effective ways of monitoring of services for those with moderate to severe mental illness. Consumers, carers, and advocacy bodies, including the Youth Coalition and MHCV, were involved in the consultation process of this audit. Read the full report to find out more.
Responding to the social and economic drivers of youth mental healthOrygen has released a new report from their recent Policy Lab, titled ‘Responding to the social and economic drivers of youth mental health’. The Policy Lab brings together young people, researchers, policy advisers and government stakeholders from across the youth and mental health sectors who drew on available evidence to discuss how ‘megatrends’ are impacting young people in Australia.
The report recommends five key policy directions including: accountable age and content regulations for social media, establishing youth-specific wellbeing measures, increased financial and psychosocial support, local initiatives to support social connections for young people, and a social media youth mental health levy. You can read the full report here.
Inquiry into Australia's Human Rights Framework On 30 May 2024, the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights tabled its extensive inquiry report regarding Australia’s Human Rights Framework. The committee has made 17 detailed recommendations, including that the government re-establish and significantly improve Australia’s Human Rights Framework, which should include: comprehensive and effective protection of human rights in legislation, through the establishment of a Human Rights Act; a significant and ongoing commitment to national human rights education; requirements for public servants to fully consider human rights in the development of legislation and policies; enhancements to human rights parliamentary scrutiny; enhancements to the role of the Australian Human Rights Commission; review of Australia’s legislation, policies and practices for compliance with human rights; and measures to monitor progress on human rights.
The Committee's media releases are available here. You can also visit the Committee's inquiry webpage to access the full report.
2024 ANU-ALIVE National Lived-Experience Priorities Study The ALIVE National Centre for Mental Health Research Translation and Australian National University are conducting the 2024 ANU-ALIVE National Lived-Experience Priorities Study. This crucial research aims to understand the mental health priorities of young people living with mental ill-health (aged 16-25) and their carers, family, or kinship groups.
Carers are invited to participate in this project via a variety of participation methods, including an online survey, photo interviews, emotion mapping, and crowdsourcing. Your input will ensure the research agenda aligns with the needs of consumers and carers going forward.
If you are interested please visit this link for more information.
Research participation opportunity: Men bereaved by suicideThe Centre for Mental Health and Community Wellbeing at the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health is conducting a study examining barriers and facilitators to help-seeking in men bereaved by suicide. The research team is seeking men aged 18 and over, based in Australia, who have been bereaved by the suicide of a close person at least six months prior to participation. The study is open to men who have sought any type of support, as well as to those who have not sought or received support after their loss.
Participation involves a 45-60 minute interview via Zoom or telephone. Participants will receive a $30 gift voucher. For more information, please contact Dr. Karl Andriessen at karl.andriessen@unimelb.edu.au.
Help-seeking behaviours for self-harm in young peopleResearchers from the University of the Sunshine Coast are conducting a study to understand the facilitators and barriers to help-seeking for self-harm in young people. Information gathered through this study will aid future service delivery for young people, carers and families dealing with self-harm.
They are currently inviting participants to partake in a 30- to 40-minute online survey. They are looking for young people (aged 15 to 24 years) with lived experience of self-harm, carers (aged 25 years or older) for a young person who has self-harmed, and mental health professionals (aged 25 years or older). Participants will also receive a $20.00 cash payment for their time.
For more information or to express interest in the study, visit their website here. You can also email Dr. Jolene Cox at jcox@usc.edu.au if you have any questions.
Know where to go for health care in the ACT with this easy toolCanberra Health Services has recently introduced a new, user-friendly health literacy tool. This tool has been designed to help you make informed decisions about the most suitable health care options for yourself or the person you care for.
You can use this tool to find information on community health services that usually don't need a referral and also covers non-government health services.
Access the tool by navigating to the Canberra Health Services website or clicking this link.
TheMHS Conference in Canberra 2024 - Don’t forget to register!Gear up for TheMHS Conference 2024, set to take place in Canberra. This year's conference promises to generate some of the most stimulating, challenging, and thought-provoking dialogues in the mental health sector. MHCV is also excited to be hosting the Carer Forum on the first day of the conference.
When: August 27 - 30, 2024
You can read more about the amazing speakers (and exciting Carer Forum) in the full program. Don't miss out on this enriching experience. Register now to ensure your place at TheMHS Conference 2024.
Carer Conversations podcast seriesCarer Conversations by The Benevolent Society, in association with Carer Gateway, is a podcast hosted by Patty Kikos to empower and inform carers across Australia.
Listen to interviews with experts and carers who share specialised information and inspiring stories about the caring role! The latest episodes can be found here.
HCCA’s ‘Staying Safe in Hospital’ – now in four more languagesHCCA has translated the 8 steps to staying safe in hospital tip sheet into 4 languages including English, हि न्दी (Hindi), فارسی (Farsi), العربیة (Arabic), and 中文 (Chinese).
The tip sheets include 8 simple steps to keep yourself safe during a hospital stay. These are part of HCCA’s suite of Staying Safe resources. You can download the 8 Steps sheets here.
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