Australians for Mental Health is an advocacy organisation focused on mental health reform. Founded by Pat McGorry AO (Australian of the Year, psychiatrist and life-long mental health reformer), our job is to build grassroots support for mental health reforms that mean you and your loved ones get better care – and get it when you need it. Our vision is that all Australians have someone to turn to and somewhere to go when they are experiencing mental illness. One in five Australians will experience mental illness in their lifetime. We now have several roadmaps and blueprints with recommendations for how to fix this problem. But what we don’t have is the political urgency to do something about it. There are two key systematic problems with our mental health system: The #MissingMiddle – people whose needs aren’t met by current mental health services, and #FixTheWaitlist – unlike most other healthcare, there is no formal waitlist for people seeking mental healthcare. As a result, 1.2 million Australians fall into the #MissingMiddle. They are too unwell for primary care, but not unwell enough for state services, and currently fall through the cracks of a broken system. 54% of Australians with diagnosable mental health conditions do not receive adequate support. For most other health conditions, there are waitlists that estimate how long you will be waiting before getting the healthcare you need. In mental health, these systems just don’t exist. Introducing a tracking system will help reduce wait times and prioritise other supports people can access while they wait to see a professional. Our advocacy is focused on solutions to address these twin issues. We believe it will take significant investment in the system to address it: around 1% of our GDP. We aim to enrol 1% of Australia (250,000 people) in the fight for a well-functioning, world-leading mental health system for all Australians.
