What is the coronavirus crisis doing to our mental health?
The coronavirus pandemic gripping the world has triggered an increase in anxiety among Australians as the nation faces an uncertain future. Fights over toilet paper at supermarkets and the stockpiling of medicines, driven by lockdown fears, give an insight into the toll COVID-19 is taking on mental health. Clinical Psychologist Dr Rebecca Anderson, from Curtin […]
Why I became an NMHPV Champion
Victorian nurse Melissa Dickinson stumbled across an advertisement for the Nursing and Midwifery Health Program Victoria’s (NMHPV) NMHPV Champion Program in 2016 while working at Geelong Private Hospital. She recalls being immediately inspired to take the plunge and sign up for the volunteer role, which involves identifying colleagues in need of support and starting conversations […]
Workers battling mental and physical injuries
A NSW mental health nurse has opened up about being assaulted on the job and suffering permanent injury as part of the release of an ACTU work health and safety survey of 26,000 workers that uncovered worrying levels of physical and psychological injuries and illnesses across Australian workplaces. Appearing alongside two bank tellers and retail […]
Report: People with mental illness die up to 20 years earlier
People with mental illness experience a range of health disparities and face a gap in life expectancy of about 20 years in a plight classed as a “human rights scandal”, according to a new ground-breaking study. Led by Australian researchers, the report found a broad range of mental illnesses are connected to health problems including […]
Mental health risk assessment: Who decides?
Mental health risk assessment practices have largely evolved in response to the perceived ‘threat’ posed to the community as a result of de-institutionalisation. The alignment of risk assessment practices to corporate clinical governance structures followed, resulting in legislated and litigated activities for those who work in mental health clinical roles. Contemporary mental health risk assessment […]
Borderline personality disorder: Carers need compassion and collaboration when seeking emergency care for their loved one
Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a common mental illness impacting around 1 to 4% of the Australian population (National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) 2012). People with BPD often have difficulties in regulating emotions and impulses and are at a high risk of suicide and self-harm. The rates of death by suicide are between […]
Women’s empowerment program to transform lives
The ACT government has launched a women’s empowerment program designed to improve the health, wellbeing and safety of ACT women. The program, delivered by Lifeline, will give 20 women who face disadvantage the opportunity to participate in the empowerment program to upskill, make connections and ultimately increase employment opportunities. The program supports the identified needs […]
RFDS targets mental health
The Royal Flying Doctor Service will use $84 million it received in May’s federal Budget to expand its existing services and establish a mental health outreach program for Australians living in rural and remote areas. The iconic service has been around for 90 years and provides extensive primary healthcare and 24-hour emergency response to people […]
Working in refugee health
Newly arrived refugees and asylum seekers receive most of their direct healthcare from nurses, so it makes sense that we have an organisation representing nurses working in refugee health. Sandy Eagar, the national chair of Refugee Nurses of Australia says the organisation was founded in 2016 to bring refugee nurses together and provide a forum […]
The therapeutic lie: a reflectice account illustrating the potential benefits when nursing an elderly confused patient
Situation: The circumstances involved an extremely anxious, frustrated and distressed man named John, with a severe cognitive impairment. John was an inpatient on a dementia ward in a mental health hospital in the southwest of England, who wanted to use the telephone to contact his long-deceased mother. One of the author’s works as a staff […]