Hope. Recovery. Resilience. Tackling depression and anxiety from every angle

Transcription

1 Hope. Recovery. Resilience. Tackling depression and anxiety from every angle

2 We ve come a long way since beyondblue was established in 2000 to raise awareness of depression, reduce the associated stigma and encourage people to get help. Now 89 per cent of Australians recognise our brand and are aware of our work. However, the demand for our services is rising and we still have a long way to go. This year, we launched a campaign to make people aware of the symptoms of anxiety, which is more common than depression. Over the coming years, we hope to do for anxiety, what we ve done for depression. We want everyone to know the symptoms of depression and anxiety, be able to recognise it and understand how to get the appropriate help regardless of where they live. With the huge growth in technology comes the opportunity to utilise the internet and social media to spread our messages and develop e-mental health programs, so people can get help online. We have a growing presence in this space and there are many effective online e-mental health programs available that have very positive outcomes. We haven t got to where we are today on our own. We ve had a lot of help from our friends. I am both astounded by and grateful for the goodwill and support that beyondblue receives from people who have experienced depression and anxiety, their families and friends, all tiers of government, community groups, the corporate world, the media and the Movember Foundation. To continue our work promoting awareness campaigns, distributing free information resources, providing the 24/7 support service and trialling new ways to provide people with the help they need when they need it we rely on the continued support of our friends. We are keen to keep partnering with organisations across Australia to help achieve our vision of an Australian community that understands depression and anxiety, empowers people to seek help and supports recovery, management and resilience. Finally my thanks go to our current partners, community groups and everyone who has volunteered, made a donation or helped us raise awareness of depression and anxiety. Kate Carnell AO CEO beyondblue 2

3 beyondblue is an independent, not-for-profit organisation supported by Federal, State and Territory Governments, as well as by the generosity of individuals and corporate Australia. Our vision An Australian community that understands depression and anxiety, empowers people to seek help, and supports recovery, management and resilience Our mission To provide national leadership to reduce the impact of depression and anxiety in the Australian community How we do it Mental health conditions don t discriminate, and neither do we. We focus on people of every age, at every stage of life, with programs and initiatives to approach the issue from every angle. Our key result areas beyondblue has established five key result areas that guide everything we do. Each area has a number of objectives that help measure the impact of our work, and ensure our programs and initiatives remain focused on achieving our vision and mission. 1. Increase awareness of depression and anxiety 2. Reduce stigma and discrimination 3. Improve help seeking 1 million+ Australians live with depression 2 million+ Australians have anxiety 4. Reduce impact, disability and mortality 5. Facilitate learning, collaboration, innovation and research 1 in 3 women and 1 in 5 men are likely to experience anxiety in their lifetime. 1 in 5 women and 1 in 8 men are likely to experience depression in their lifetime. 6 Australians die by suicide every day - 5 of whom are men. 3

4 Our work We aim to improve the mental health of every person in Australia at every life stage and across a range of environments. Women 1 in 5 Australian women experiences depression, and 1 in 3 experiences anxiety. Women experience some mental health conditions, including depression and anxiety, at higher rates than men. The beyondblue website provides a range of resources to support women, as well as an online forum to share experiences and seek advice. Pregnancy and early parenthood Childhood Depression affects up to 1 in 10 women during pregnancy, and almost 1 in 7 in the first year after giving birth. 1 in 7 school-aged children has a mental health problem, yet of these only 1 in 4 receive help. beyondblue provides resources and support for schools, parents and carers to nurture happy, balanced kids. We have supported and developed several programs that can be tailored to local needs, including KidsMatter and SenseAbility. Young people Around 550,000 young people aged live with depression or anxiety. 75% of adult mental health conditions emerge before the age of 25. Adolescence is a critical time for mental health. beyondblue s youth program Youthbeyondblue aims to empower young people and encourage them to share experiences with their peers. 40,000 + people visit each month beyondblue plays an important role in supporting the National Perinatal Depression Initiative. We provide resources for women and their families that focus on emotional health and wellbeing throughout the perinatal period. Additionally, our online forum, Just Speak Up, offers women a place to find information and share experiences. Men 1 in 8 Australian men experiences depression in their lifetime, and 1 in 5 experiences anxiety. The highest rates of depression and anxiety occur in men aged 35 44, as do the highest rates of suicide. The Beyond Barriers Strategy involves a suite of projects, including Man Therapy and The Shed Online, that encourage men to take action. We also partner with various mental health organisations to develop better ways to support men with the ultimate aim of reducing the high rate of suicide. Raising awareness of anxiety Over 2 million Australians live with anxiety, making it more common than depression, yet many don t recognise the symptoms. beyondblue is raising awareness and providing support through resources and programs, such as Get to know anxiety. This campaign features a short film starring Ben Mendelsohn who describes the symptoms of anxiety and challenges audiences to do something about it now they know the signs. 4

5 Older people beyondblue s Older Adults program encourages older people experiencing anxiety or depression to seek help, which is very important given our ageing population. Together with Councils on the Ageing (COTA), we also developed a peer-education program beyond maturityblues. 93,700 + older people have attended a beyond maturityblues education session Gay, lesbian, bi, trans and intersex (GLBTI) communities Exclusion and prejudice contribute to high rates of depression, anxiety, self-harm and suicide within GLBTI communities. beyondblue works in partnership with GLBTI organisations and engages with GLBTI communities through our national awareness campaign Stop. Think. Respect. and Pride Festivals across Australia. We also fund several research projects. When compared with heterosexual people, homosexual and bisexual people are twice as likely experience anxiety (31.5% compared with 14.1%) and three times as likely to experience depression and related disorders (19% compared with 6%). Multicultural communities beyondblue recently formed a partnership with Mental Health in Multicultural Australia (MHiMA) to inform and develop programs that raise awareness, reduce stigma and encourage culturally appropriate help-seeking among multicultural/culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have much higher levels of distress and suicide than non-indigenous people. beyondblue works with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities to develop programs and resources that effectively communicate stories for keeping strong. We have also co-hosted a National Communities Workshop and Indigenous Roundtable discussion. Families and carers Family members and carers play a vital role in supporting people s recovery from depression and anxiety, yet often they have poor health and wellbeing as a result. In addition to providing resources and support, beyondblue helped distribute Family Focus, a DVD to help parents with depression or anxiety to discuss their condition with their children. An estimated 1 million+ children live with a parent who has depression or anxiety. More than a third of carers experience depression. 5

6 Education Young people with good social and emotional skills are less likely to experience mental health problems in the future. beyondblue develops and supports programs that can be integrated into early learning, primary, secondary and tertiary curricula, including KidsMatter, SenseAbility, and thedesk. More than 1,275 schools, 260 early childhood education and care services, and parents across the country use KidsMatter. About 60% of Australian secondary schools have a SenseAbility kit. 75% of Australian universities have registered for thedesk with 40,000+ site visits in 12 months. Aged care Limited training options available for aged care staff has driven beyondblue to take a leadership role in this area. The Professional Education to Aged Care (PEAC) program provides workshops on depression and anxiety in older people for residential and community care staff. We have also developed training resources that are now included as part of aged care training qualifications. 34.7% of adults in residential care have depression and even more may experience anxiety conditions. Workplace The beyondblue National Workplace Program develops people s skills to manage depression and anxiety in Australian workplaces through training workshops, online programs, partnerships with relevant organisations, and research. Research beyondblue supports evidence-to-action research that increases our capacity to make a difference. In addition to supporting various research programs through the beyondblue Victorian Centre of Excellence and the National Priority Driven Research Program, we have sought to address gaps in evidence for our priority communities. beyondblue has supported more than 250 research projects totalling more than $50 million. 70,000 + people have completed beyondblue s National Workplace Program Discrimination in insurance beyondblue is working to influence a change in policies and practices that discriminate against people with a mental health condition. This includes working with the Mental Health Council of Australia to effect change under our Discrimination in Insurance Project. Suicide prevention Mental health conditions, especially depression, are present in a high proportion of people who suicide, many of whom are untreated at the time of death. Health services and primary care beyondblue works with health professionals and professional health bodies to improve the treatment of mental health conditions, through resources such as the development of Clinical Practice Guidelines for the treatment of depression in pregnant women, mothers and young people. beyondblue s Practitioner Directory provides people with details for more than 3,500 health professionals. beyondblue has a dedicated Suicide Prevention Advisor to develop, implement and integrate suicide prevention and intervention strategies across all beyondblue initiatives. We recently introduced an innovative pilot program that provides support and resources for people who have attempted to end their life. Stigma reduction While awareness of depression and anxiety has increased, the same level of change in stigma reduction has not been achieved. This is a major focus for beyondblue, particularly with men and within Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, GLBTI and multicultural communities. 6

7 Supporting the community beyondblue information resources beyondblue provides an extensive range of free information resources that focus on improving the mental health of every person in Australia, at every stage of their life. Resources are available via the beyondblue website or support service. beyondblue has distributed over 70 million information resources across Australia since beyondblue support service Our support service gives every person in Australia the opportunity to talk through their concerns with a qualified health professional. People who access the service can receive a one-on-one counselling session focused on addressing their immediate concern, as well as receive information and advice on continuing to seek help. There are three ways to access the service: Call , any time of the day or night Send an via the beyondblue website Select the web chat option on the beyondblue website, available between 4pm and 10pm (AEST), seven days a week. The beyondblue support service has received more than 500,000 calls since Daily contact with the beyondblue support service has significantly increased since the introduction of the new website and web chat service in April beyondblue website Our website offers a range of resources about anxiety and depression. In April 2013, we re-launched the site with additional features and content, including web chat, access to online forums, and the option to volunteer or make a donation. 13.5M + visits to since launching in 2001 Social media Social media is an effective way to reach the community, gauge opinion and host discussions. For many users, sharing ideas and engaging with others online can provide hope and encouragement, and is a great way to reduce stigma. beyondblue on social media since July ,000+ Facebook fans 800,000+ YouTube views 12,000+ Twitter followers 7

8 Support us or find out more beyondblue With your support we can continue raising awareness and reducing the impact of anxiety and depression on individuals and the Australian community. Youthbeyondblue KidsMatter thedesk Man Therapy The Shed Online Discrimination in insurance facebook.com/beyondblue twitter.com/beyondblue Donate online Beyond Blue Ltd. BL/ /13