Learning from Denmark to reduce teenage self-harm

Denmark’s success in reducing teenage self-harm suggests that positive social media and more support services can offset the pressures of school and work which can drive young people to damaging behaviours.

Older people still shun mental health support

New research has found that more than 40 per cent of older Australians with chronic disease would be unlikely to seek help for mental health conditions even if they needed it.

Smartphones can help tackle Australia’s mental health crisis

With smartphones and smart devices now ubiquitous in most Australian homes, a review by the Black Dog Institute has identified how these technologies can be used to identify, prevent and help treat mental illness. 

Australia’s hidden mental illness epidemic

Mental concerns like depression and anxiety are now the most common serious illness among Australians, with rates among women rising to 20 per cent.

Global commission into mental illness offers blueprint for change

A taskforce of more than 30 international experts have released a report on the health inequities experienced by people with mental illness and offered recommendations to reduce social inequalities and personal distress.

Kids cartwheel to better mental health

“Circus takes your mind off some things…sad things…it’s my weekly pick-up and sort of an escape.”

A new understanding of hoarding disorder

Hoarding disorder is distressingly common, and was recently classified as a medical disorder by the World Health Organization, in a move hailed by both psychiatrists and hoarders themselves as “extremely significant.”

Policing on the front line of mental health emergencies

Police and mental health professionals must work together and ‘mind the gap’ when called to deal with people suffering mental health issues.

Could mental health apps lead to over-diagnosis?

There are tens of thousands of commercially available mental health apps on the market, many hugely popular. But how do these apps portray mental health and how does this suggest mental health problems should be managed?

The future of mental health

Depression is expected to become the largest single healthcare burden by 2030. The Black Dog Institute’s Dr Peter Baldwin looks at the role technology can play in the transformation of mental health.