1539Australia’s worsening mental health – what’s next?

Abstract

Abstract Background The population prevalence of mental illness over time, and by sociodemographic subgroups, are important benchmark data. Examining reliable population level data can highlight groups with greater mental-illness related symptom burden and inform policy and strategy. Methods Secondary analysis of Australian National Health Surveys (n = 78,204) from 2001-02 to 2017-18. Trends in the prevalence of very high scores on the Kessler-10 (K10), a measure of psychological distress capturing symptoms of affective and anxiety disorders, were examined by time, age, gender, and socioeconomic status. Data were standardised to the 2001 Australian census population on the strata of sex and age. Results In 2017-18, the rate of probable mental illness was estimated at 5.1%, a 1.5% increase (representing an additional 367,000 Australians) since 2007. In 2017-18, the subgroups with the highest rates were women aged 18-24 (8.01%, 95% CI = 5.9%-10.2%), and the poorest fifth of Australians (8.02%, 95% CI = 7.0%-9.0%). Women aged 55-64 demonstrated the greatest increase in rates (2001: 3.5%, 95% CI = 2.5%-4.6%; 2017: 7.2%, 95% CI = 5.9%-8.5%; z = 4.10, p ≤ 0.001). Conclusions Despite efforts to improve population mental health, rates of probable mental illness in Australia have increased since 2007. Findings will be discussed in conjunction to extant social and health policies, and potential gaps in the delivery of gold-standard mental health care. Key messages The rate of probable mental illness in Australia seem to be increasing, especially in women aged 55-64, and those from low-SES backgrounds.