Financial crisis causing more need for mental health services in Australia

From The Age in Australia:

Figures show the global financial crisis has coincided with a large increase in Australians seeking mental health services.

The Mental Health Council of Australia says Medicare figures show a 40 per cent increase in the number of Medicare claims for mental health consultations in the past two months.

The council says the jump is alarming and that anecdotal evidence that people seeking services are raising concerns about unemployment and other financial pressures.

Mental Health Council CEO David Crosbie says it is a massive increase.

"The number of people getting clinical psychology services has gone from about 54,000 in March 2008 to 83,000 in March 2009," he said.

In an effort to improve access to mental health care services, the Howard government introduced a Medicare rebate for visits to psychiatrists, clinical psychologists and therapists.

But in the past few months there has been a massive increase in people claiming this rebate for mental health care services.

Mr Crosbie says he is surprised by the recent jump in the figures.

He says mental health professionals expected an initial surge in people getting treatment once the rebate was initially introduced.

"I think it's alarming in that so many Australians feel the need to have a mental health care plan, and so many are seeking psychological therapy," he said.

"We thought that would plateau, the number of people who would be using these services, but it's clearly increasing quite significantly. In fact, quicker than it ever has before.

"In some ways that may reflect that we've had a lot of unmet demand, and it's a good thing that people are actually getting the help they need.

"At another level, it may reflect the kind of broader psychological stress on people that comes from that feeling that we're in crisis all the time is having an impact, and particularly when you marry that with high levels of unemployment."

The Mental Health Council produced the figures after analysing Medicare rebate numbers.

It is not certain whether the global financial crisis is the main reason behind the increase.

The actual breakdown of the gender or age group of those people seeking mental health care services has not yet been released.

Professor Ian Hickie from the Brain and Mind Institute in Sydney says he has heard of anecdotal evidence that people are worried about their jobs or other financial pressures.

"We've seen a lot of reports from young people - who we particularly access - about worries, about unemployment, difficulties getting casual work, difficulties paying their bills," he said.

"Certainly those who are somewhat older - particularly the men that we see - [have] concerns about whether they'll be able to hang onto their jobs, the financial pressure they're under.

"So it's a topic that seems to be accounting for more people coming forward for services, and certainly top of their list of things that they are now worrying about."

He says many people who need the services the most might be falling through the cracks.

Professor Hickie also says men, particularly younger men, may not be going to their GPs with mental health problems.

"We've been very lucky in Australia over the last decade that there's been a 30 per cent fall in suicide altogether, up until about 2006, and a 46 per cent fall in youth suicide during that period, when we had very strong economic growth and very low rates of unemployment," he said.

"That essentially stopped about 18 months ago, best we can tell from the figures, and we're now concerned that if the economic situation gets worse, you're likely to see a rise in suicide figures.

"That's pretty much the history of these things in Australia and in other developed countries."