Past Programs
Mental Health - 2008
Optimism
20/11/2008
2008 has been a difficult year, with the global financial crisis and our biggest childcare provider going into receivership, not to mention the drought and climate change challenges. But psychologists say being optimistic is the key to surviving the tough times. And now Australian academics are looking at whether governments and managers maintain a level of optimism by keeping some of the bad news to themselves. Is the old adage 'what you don't know can't hurt you' true? And why are we smarter, healthier, and more sociable if we're optimistic?
Coping with chronic pain
16/06/2008
One in five Australians of working age suffers from on-going pain. If you're over 65, the figure jumps to one in two. A recent Access Economics report commissioned by MBF says the annual cost of chronic pain is more than $34 billion. If you want the breakdown, that includes a $7 billion drain on the health system and productivity losses of $11.7 billion—much of that in workers compensation claims.
Chronic pain is generally defined as pain experienced every day for three months or more. It usually follows an acute phase and the causes are varied, including arthritis, cancer, surgical complications, and injuries, particularly lower back.
While all the research recommends a holistic approach to dealing with pain, is our health system geared to that? Can reliance on drugs lead to poorer outcomes? Without real treatment or cure, what are some of the best strategies for coping with and living with pain?
Keeping Tabs
11/06/2008
The federal government says safety is a priority in its plans to make nursing homes report all residents who go missing. Homes would be required to notify the department as well as the police when a resident is missing without explanation.
Minister for Ageing Justine Elliot is also looking at the use of medi-tag bracelets. The bracelet would be engraved with a symbol indicating the condition of its wearer, but the proposal could go further. GPS tracking devices are being looked at for people with Alzheimer's disease following a pilot program in Western Australia. In that study, satellite tracking and internet software were used by family members to keep tabs on dementia sufferers. So when do issues of personal safety overtake civil rights?
Social inclusion and mental health
07/05/2008
Social inclusion, it's the Blairite buzz-phrase embraced by Kevin Rudd in the form of community cabinet meetings, but what does it actually mean? It's been the preferred pseudonym for poverty, but the Mental Health Coordinating Council in NSW has recently released a document which 'brings together the evidence linking mental health, recovery from mental illness, and the principles of social inclusion.' IF social inclusion is relevant to recovering from mental health, how can it be supported?
