Seeking Clinician Input

Reviewing national guidance for mental health assessment and referral

The Integrated Mental Health team have recently been contracted by the Australian Government Department of Health to review the implementation of new national guidance for the initial assessment and referral of individuals presenting with mental health conditions in primary health care settings (we refer to this as the Guidance). A key component of the review is to compare mental health referral pathways identified using the Guidance against clinical judgment.

We are currently seeking 10-15 clinicians including GPs and mental health specialists to assist with this project. It would involve reviewing referral documents for approximately 20-30 consumers over two rounds, as follows:

• Round 1: January 2020 (10-15 consumers)
• Round 2: April 2020 (10-15 consumers)

We will provide reimbursement of $100 per hour to review these files and complete a one-page audit form for each consumer. You will be asked to indicate the type of mental healthcare you consider appropriate for each consumer, what factors you took into account, and what information you would have liked but may not have had.

If you’re interested in helping out with this project please reply to Elsa Barton elsa.barton@unimelb.edu.au or ph. 9035 4155 by September 30. Please also feel free to forward this information to your colleagues.