Showing posts with label mental health. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mental health. Show all posts

Friday 24 March 2023

Addressing flood trauma in Northern Rivers children thirteen months after a catastrophic unnatural disaster


 

The Sydney Morning Herald, “Northern Rivers in youth mental health crisis”, 20 March 2023, excerpt:


A soon-to-be-published resilience survey has found levels of depression and anxiety symptoms are now higher among Northern Rivers children and young people than the national average of earlier survey participants for some student groups.


Conducted almost six months after the February 2022 disaster, the survey was taken by 6611 school students, nearly 13 per cent of all young people aged between five and 19 in the region.


It found that almost one in three Northern Rivers primary students and more than one in three secondary students were at risk of depression and anxiety.


More than 40 per cent of primary students were at risk of trauma-related stress. For secondary students, it was almost 20 per cent.














Inundated, isolated, in despair: Floodwaters around Lismore’s St Carthage’s Cathedral and Trinity Catholic College.CREDIT:GETTY



Healthy North Coast, a not-for profit organisation delivering the Australian government's Primary Health Network program in the region, commissioned the research as the first step in its Resilient Kids initiative, funded by a $10 million grant from the National Emergency Management Agency.


Healthy North Coast chief executive Monika Wheeler said that the survey established a baseline which could help to measure the mental health and wellbeing of young people in the Northern Rivers over time.


She said young people reported generally feeling supported and connected within their schools and communities. However, the survey also highlighted areas to focus on in future.


"The Resilient Kids initiative will use local insights to design tailored mental health and wellbeing supports," she said.


"We know that successful recovery is based on understanding community context and is not a one-off event.


"It's multi-year, multi-layered, and our approach to supporting our young people might change over time as we see how they respond."


Tens of millions of federal and state dollars has been promised for mental health and wellbeing programs in the region's schools and wider community.


Safe haven hubs have opened across the region to provide free mental health support. Drop-ins are encouraged and there is no need for referrals or appointments. For young people, dedicated online and phone services also are available.


The difficulty is reaching those who won't, or can't, use these services.


Children's charities Unicef Australia and Royal Far West are rolling out a $4.5 million support program covering 30 state primary schools and preschools in the Northern Rivers and south-east Queensland.


Social workers, psychologists, speech pathologists and occupational therapists will enter school communities to help staff address learning delays in children.


Unicef Australia chief advocate for children Nicole Breeze said thousands of children will need intensive support, as the effects of the disaster can potentially remain hidden for years.


"Our first engagement in this space was after the Black Summer bushfires," she said. "With children the impact can stay hidden, it can take a year or two, sometimes three. The good news is that with the right support, at the right time, they can bounce back."


The plight of Northern Rivers children garnered international attention Last April when Prince William spoke online with Jeanette Wilkins, the principal of St Joseph's Primary School Woodburn, who told him the community had lost its school and "everything in it" and the mental health of the community had taken a major blow.


The school was underwater for eight days.


"We're two months down the track and nothing has changed, those 34 families are still displaced, so there's no certainty for those children," she told the prince.


"For us, the most important thing was to make contact with our families and our children, and as fast as possible to set up a school somewhere just to get the children back to some form of normality and start dealing with their trauma."


At Christmas, 29 families of students and staff at St Joseph's (more than half the students) were still living in some form of temporary housing such as a caravan, shed, shipping container or the shell of their flood-stripped home.


Ten Catholic schools in the Lismore diocese were directly affected by the floods, including St Joseph's. Three schools are inaccessible, and 1250 students are being taught in temporary facilities.


Morning tea and lunch are provided in some schools, as are new school uniforms and shoes, to help address absenteeism. A team of 30 counsellors is working in 23 schools, and community services provider Social Futures is operating in seven of the flood-hit schools to assist families in gaining to access additional mental health social and financial support.


Thirty-seven state facilities suffered significant damage, and five schools still operate away from their original site.


Sunday 16 May 2021

Taking Australia's temperature in the Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison years using death as the thermometer. WARNING: this post contains annual suicide statistics.


When it comes to forming government policy it often seems that politicians see policy implementation and outcomes in terms of the effect they will have on national GDP growth or decline and annual budget balances or deficits.


Very rarely does one hear a government minister discuss the effect ideologically driven policies have on human capital, on the sense of wellbeing of ordinary people.


Since late 2013 Australia has been governed by a collection of politicians led first by Tony Abbott, then Malcolm Turnbull and lastly Scott Morrison. The kindest term for this motley collection of MPs and senators would have to be 'enthusiastic cultural and economic warriors of the hard right'.


So using a crude measurement let's look at one indicator of when that sense of wellbeing fails.


CONFIRMED DEATHS BY SUICIDE IN AUSTRALIA 2012-2020


  • 2012 there were 2,580 deaths by suicide
  • 2013 there were 2,610 deaths by suicide

The Abbott Coalition Government was elected to govern in September 2013.Scott Morrison becomes a Cabinet Minister and Minister for Immigration and Border Protection.

  • 2014 there were 2,922 deaths by suicide

Scott Morrison ceases to be Minister for Immigration and Border Protection and becomes Minister for Social Services in December 2014.

As Minister for Social Services Morrison announces he is going to "stop the bludgers".

In the 12 months to 30 June 2014 a total of 1,373 income support payment recipients suffered financial loss caused by the department’s failure to follow proper procedure or to provide appropriate advice.

By June 2014 the number of unemployed people increased by 43,700 to 789,000, with the unemployment rate at a 12 year high. 

Newstart unemployment benefit remains well below the poverty line.

  • 2015 there were 3,093 deaths by suicide

Scott Morrison ceases to be Minister for Social Services in September 2015 and becomes Australian Treasurer. Christian Porter becomes Minister for Social Services, Alan Tudge Assistant Minister for Social Services and Stuart Robert becomes Minister for Human Services.

The number of unemployed people looking for full-time work reached 551,800 and the number of unemployed people looking for part-time work increased by 34,300 to 243,400.

As  Australian Treasurer Morrison strips est. $15 billion over 4 years from basic services in Budget 2015-16. These cuts are expected to impact families and low-income earners.

In the 12 months to 30 June 2015 the number of Indigenous deaths in custody was the highest recorded since 1979-80.


  • 2016 there were 2,902 deaths by suicide

National unemployment rate for 2016 nears a three-year low at 5.7%, with unemployment decreasing over the year by 11,900 persons.

In the 12 months to 30 June 2016 a total of 69,921 welfare recipients had their income support payments reduced. 

Unlawful ‘robodebt’ debt-averaging algorithm introduced in 2016 - letters began to be sent out to past & current welfare recipients in December of the year.

Cashless Debit Card trials commence, restricting welfare recipients access to cash withdrawals from their pensions, benefits and allowances.

  • 2017 there were 3,285 deaths by suicide

Australia’s unemployment rate hit a 14-month high, rising to 5.9% in February. Budget 2017-18 announced mutual obligation requirements attached to Newstart payments were being increased.

Aged Pension qualifying age began to rise on 1 July 2017.

  • 2018 there were 3,138 suicides - averaging 8 deaths per day. NSW had the highest state total at 899 deaths.

    As of June 2018  71%, or 802,600 people, received an unemployment payment—717,000 for Newstart Allowance and 85,600 for Youth Allowance (other). This represented 5.2% of the population aged 18–64. 

    In late June 2018, 10,600 Newstart Allowance recipients were aged 65, reflecting the increase in the qualifying age for the Age Pension to 65.5 from 1 July 2017.

    An est. 80,000 single parents now on Newstart unemployment benefit rather than a parenting payment.

    In July 2018 Parents Next program was introduced which applied governmental coercive control of single parents on parenting payments.

    In August 2018 Scott Morrison ceased to be Australian Treasurer and became Prime Minister.

    • 2019 there were 3,318 deaths by suicide

    In the 12 months to 30 June 2019 under the privatised welfare-to-work scheme 121,604 people had their income support suspended without reason.

    The Cashless Debit Card trial now includes est. 15,000 cardholders.

    • 2020 no deaths data published for 2020 to date

    Dynamic modelling shows that there may be a 25 per cent increase in suicides recorded for 2020 due to COVID-19 impacts.

    Unemployment rate reached 6.2% in April, 6.8% in November and 6.6% in December 2020. Unemployment alone is associated with a two to threefold increased relative-risk of death by suicide, compared with being employed.



    PRINCIPAL SOURCES


    https://www.aihw.gov.au/suicide-self-harm-monitoring/data/deaths-by-suicide-in-australia/suicide-deaths-over-time


    https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/suicide-and-intentional-self-harm


    https://ama.com.au/media/joint-statement-covid-19-impact-likely-lead-increased-rates-suicide-and-mental-illness


    https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/7d12b0f6763c78caca257061001cc588/7dc1d5f5ad9c94a5ca2580c80013b0eb!OpenDocument


    https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/organisations/about-us/annual-reports


    https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/employment-and-unemployment/labour-force-australia/dec-2020#:~:text=Seasonally%20adjusted%20estimates%20for%20December,Employment%20increased%20to%2012%2C910%2C800.


    https://www.aic.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-05/sr_05_270418.pdf


    Friday 11 December 2020

    Try this ABC interactive postcode search to find out how your suburb is faring with regard to access to mental health care


    Find out how your postcode can influence whether you need help — and if you’ll get it — at https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-12-08/covid-mental-health-system-medicare-inequality/12512378?nw=0


    This is what the search revealed about Clarence Valley in the NSW Northern Rivers region.


    According to ABC News “Story Lab” interactive article on 8 December 2020:


    NSW postcodes 2450*, 2456, 2463, 2464, 2465, are post codes with profiles indicating they are somewhat disadvantaged, where 13.7 per cent of people are likely to be highly psychologically distressed.


    NSW postcodes 2370*, 2460, 2462, 2466 & 2469* are postcodes with profiles indicating they are most disadvantaged fifth of suburbs, where 18.3 per cent of people are likely to be highly psychologically distressed.


    People in these postcodes fall into the area of Clarence Valley.


    In Clarence Valley, taxpayers funded 23.49 sessions of care per 100 people, which cost $2,164. The national average is 22.87 sessions for $2,375.


    In case you might have been wondering, NSW post code 2229 (where Prime Minister & MP for Cook Scott Morrison indicates his family home is located) and postcode 2063 (where NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian indicates her home is located) have profiles which are among the least disadvantaged so only 9 per cent of people are likely to be highly psychologically distressed.


    In Morrison’s post code taxpayers fund 25.42 sessions of care per 100 people, which cost $2,632. That's a higher spend than the national average of 22.87 sessions for $2,375. While in Berejiklian’s postcode taxpayers funded 22.8 sessions of care per 100 people, which cost $2,659. That's nearer the national average of 22.87 sessions for $2,375.


    NOTES


    * Postcode 2450 predominately covers Coffs Harbour, 2370 predominately covers Inverell-Tenterfield and postcode 2469 predominately covers Richmond-Tweed, with some crossover with the Clarence Valley at edges of these post code ranges.


    Thursday 3 December 2020

    Individuals and communities in New South Wales are feeling the emotional and social stress of two horror years in a row

     

    One can hear the stress, fatigue, sadness, helplessness and sometimes despair behind a great many of the tweets and posts on Australian social media - especially from those living in regional areas around the country.


    One NSW Labor MP recently observed to me that so many people are now in a dark place.


    So sadly, this article comes as no surprise…..


    The Daily Telegraph, 1 December 2020:


    It was thrust into the national spotlight when 33 people tragically lost their lives in last year’s deadly bushfires. But the NSW south coast holds another unenviable title — the suicide capital of NSW.


    In a grim reminder of the mental health battle facing our state, the area from Bateman’s Bay to the Victorian border lost 68 people to suicide between 2015 and 2019.


    This is compared to the 33 lives lost to the bushfires which ravaged the region from September 2019 through to January 2020.


    Analysis of Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) data reveals the south coast has a suicide rate of 21.5 per 100,000 people — the highest rate in NSW and an increase on the previous year.


    Taree, Inverell, Yass and the Clarence Valley are the next worst affected. “We are seeing in the coastal regions the cumulative effects of the bushfires, social dislocation and the consequent effects of further trauma through COVID-19,” Professor Ian Hickie of the University of Sydney’s Brain and Mind Centre said. “These are the areas where there are already economic impacts, disruption and now there are additional effects. We talk about this idea of stacked distress.” The figures also reveal a yawning gap between suicide rates in the bush and Sydney, where the overwhelming majority of mental health professionals live.


    Gosford and Wyong on the Central Coast are the second and third-worst areas in Greater Sydney, behind the Sydney CBD which has a suicide rate of 14.6 deaths per 100,000 people.


    Yet there are 27 other rural and regional locations with a higher suicide rate. Youth mental health expert Professor Patrick McGorry said the statistics “are so shocking — it’s like a war zone”.


    There’s more than 15,500 people who have died in that five-year period (nationwide). If the cause of death were something different — like drownings or car accidents — it would be in people’s faces and on the front page,” he said.


    Lifeline: 13 11 14

    [my yellow highlighting]


    By January 2019 drought affected 99.8 per cent of New South Wales and most of the state was still experiencing drought in January 2020.


    The devastating 2019-20 bushfire season commenced early in regional New South Wales. The Clarence Valley fires started at the beginning of June 2019.


    The COVID-19 pandemic reached New South Wales on 15 January 2020 and first appeared in the NSW Northern Rivers region on or about 16 March 2020. 


    In New South Wales in October 2020 unemployment stood at 6.5% and the number of people in the state who were unemployed for periods ranging from up to 4 weeks to 52 weeks and under 104 weeks rose by 148,300 individuals between October 2019 and October 2020.


    By July 2020 the employment growth rate stood at 0.0% to -2.4% across the NSW Northern Rivers region.


    Fire, drought, fear of infection, public health orders and economic recession significantly affected how coastal communities have lived their lives in the last two years.


    According to the federal Australian Institute of Health and Wellbeing:


    The newly established New South Wales Suicide Monitoring System, launched by the NSW Government on 9 November 2020, reported 673 suspected suicides in NSW from 1 January to 30 September 2020. This is similar to the 672 suspected suicides reported for the same period in 2019 (NSW Ministry of Health 2020). Three-quarters of suspected suicides in 2020 were among males and more than half of all suspected suicides occurred among those aged between 25 and 55 (NSW Ministry of Health 2020).


    Again, according to the same source, in New South Wales in 2018 there were a total 899 deaths registered as suicide and in 2019 at total of 937 deaths registered as suicide.

     

    The number of registered deaths in 2019 exceeded the 22 year high of 1997 which saw 935 deaths registered as suicide.


    The rate of NSW ambulance attendances for mental heath issues in 2019 was 114.3 persons per 100,000 population.


    In 2018-2019 a total of 297 males and 388 females were hospitalised for self-harm on the NSW North Coast.


    The rate of NSW Northern Rivers hospitalisations for self-harm by females in 2018-2019 ranged from Tweed Valley 181.5 persons per 100,000 population, Clarence Valley 128.3 persons, Richmond Valley-Hinterland 169.6 persons, and Richmond Valley-Coastal 104.2 persons. There are as yet no published figures for 2020.