headspace

headspace is the National Youth Mental Health Foundation and is an Australian Government initiative which seeks to address mental health and drug and alcohol issues experienced by young people.

Approximately 14% of 12-17 years olds and 27% of 18-25 year olds experience mental health problems each year – that is, one million young Australians need access to help.

The Australan Division of General Practice, in conjunction with the ORYGEN Research Centre, the Australian Psychological Society and the Brain and Mind Research Institute will work as a coalition to:

encourage early help-seeking by young people with mental health and substance use issues, and their families, through the development and implementation of local and national community awareness activities
assisting a range of service providers who work with young people to build their skills in engagement, assessment and the provision of evidenced-based treatments, through the development and dissemination of evidence-based education and training resources and initiatives
support the development of more accessible, effective and integrated approaches to service delivery for young people with mental health and substance use issues in local communities across Australia, through the administration of a national youth services development fund
promote the uptake of evidence-based practice in youth mental health, through the establishment of a centre of excellence

ADGP, in partnership with the APS, will develop and roll-out evidence-based training in the area of youth mental health for GPs, practice staff, allied health professionals, those working in juvenile justice, youth workers, hospital emergency departments, paramedics, emergency services personnel and other community groups.

For more information about headspace go to http://www.headspace.org.au/