We have moved to our new Blog at Mental Health Australia.org

We have migrated all the material from this site to our new blog home.  The move coincided with the launch of new Facebook site.

http://mentalhealthaustralia.org.au

Looking forward to seeing you in our new home.

Harnessing technology to improve mental health

University of Sydney cross-disciplinary researchers are harnessing the benefits offered by advances in online technology to develop innovative programs improving mental health in young people.


Associate Professor Rafael Calvo, director of the Software Engineering Group at the School of Electrical and Information Engineering and Professor Ian Hickie, Director of the Brain and Mind Research Institute, are collaborating with the Young and Well Cooperative Research Centre (Young and Well CRC) to develop new online interventions to support young people's mental health.

The Young and Well CRC is an Australian-based, international research centre that unites young people with researchers, practitioners, innovators and policy-makers from over 70 partner organisations.

Associate Professor Calvo said together the researchers are exploring the role of technology in young people's lives, and how it can be used to improve the mental health and wellbeing of those aged 12 to 25.

"The research focuses on how digital technologies can be used for the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of disorders as well as for promoting psychological wellbeing," he said.

"This focus comes from the common understanding that digital technologies have made their way into all the aspects of our lives that, according to psychology, influence our wellbeing -- everything from social relationships and curiosity to engagement and learning.

"The potential of these technologies to be used to help those experiencing mental health problems has motivated researchers to investigate how internet technologies like e-mail and social media platforms like Facebook could support those when they need it most, particularly young people.
"The engineers who build these internet technologies have seldom focused on the psychological impact of these tools, until now."

The researchers and the Young and Well CRC are engaging in multidisciplinary approaches that bring software specialists together with psychologists and other mental health experts to create new technologies, specially designed to support mental health and wellbeing.

"These technologies help those suffering from depression, anxiety or other mental health issues, as well as those who are healthy but want to further develop positive attributes like resilience, empathy, optimism, gratitude and other factors shown to have an impact on life satisfaction and psychological wellbeing," Associate Professor Calvo said.

The three-year project will build upon the Inspire Foundation's ReachOut.com initiative to conduct research that informs the development of a range of online interventions including:

• a Wellbeing Hub where young people can download tools and applications to improve their wellbeing
• a semi-automated triage system
• an online clinic to provide direct support to young people experiencing a mental health difficulty.

These resources are mapped to the Australian school curriculum and will be offered at no cost to schools.

This research, together with case studies from around the world, are being described in Associate Professor Calvo's forthcoming book Positive Computing: Technology for a Better World, to be published by MIT Press. Positive Computing is an emerging field of research and practice dedicated to the investigation and design of technologies that support psychological wellbeing and human potential.

Associate Professor Calvo believes that by bringing together research and methodologies well-established in psychology, education, neuroscience, engineering and human-computer interaction, we can begin a new era of digital experiences that are deeply human-centred.

Source: The University of Sydney

Mental health spending rises to $6.9 billion, or $309 per Australian | News.com.au

Mental health spending rises to $6.9 billion, or $309 per Australian | News.com.au

New mothers are anxious – not depressed

A study has found that anxiety is more common than depression among new mothers.
Researchers surveyed mothers of healthy babies before birth and then followed them up at several points after birth.

They found that more women suffered from anxiety than depression and that this was associated with greater use of health services and lower rates of breastfeeding.

Read more at Penn State College of Medicine

The 14th International Mental Health Conference - Call for Papers Open

The 14th International Mental Health Conference will be held at Outrigger, Surfers Paradise on Monday the 5th and Tuesday the 6th of August 2013.  Optional workshops will be held on Wednesday the 7th of August. The conference will focus on the complex mental health issues of Depression, Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder and Dementia.

The human, social and economic consequences of mental health disorders and illness are great, and there is a growing realisation of the serious limitations of focusing solely on treatment and rehabilitation. Addressing these factors to improve mental health requires that many organisations from diverse sectors within the community recognise how they can and do contribute to the promotion of mental health and well being.

Featuring Australia and New Zealand's finest clinical practitioners, academics, and mental health experts, the conference will motivate and inspire professionals (and future professionals) by sharing information about;

• On-going research and findings
• New knowledge developments: implementation of programs and strategies.
• Latest evidence and guidelines on early diagnosis and successful patient management.
• New treatments.
• Research validation of early intervention strategies and treatments.
• Prevention Strategies: examine and review effectiveness
• Translational Research - from lab bench to the clinic and individual patient.
• Discussion on research and best practice

Keynote addresses, submitted papers, workshops and case studies will examine how approaches and techniques can be incorporated into daily practice.

The conference streams will focus on Depression, Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder and Dementia and address; Primary Interventions - Promoting Recovery - Preventing Relapse - Policy Initiatives

Confirmed Speakers
Professor Philip LP Morris  - President Australian and New Zealand Mental Health Association
Professor Philip Mitchell - Professor and Head of the School of Psychiatry at the University of New South Wales; Convenor of Brain Sciences UNSW; Chair of the NSW Mental Health Priority Taskforce; Consultant Psychiatrist, Black Dog Institute, Sydney; Guest Professor, Shanghai Jaitong University; and Board Member of the Anika Foundation.
Professor Elizabeth Beattie - Director of the Dementia Collaborative Research Centre (DCRC) - Carers and Consumers (based within the School of Nursing at QUT).
Professor Michael Berk - Chair in Psychiatry at Deakin University. Professorial Research Fellow at the University of Melbourne and the Mental Health Research Institute.
Professor Cynthia Shannon Weickert - , BA Mphil PhD - Macquarie Group Foundation Chair of Schizophrenia Research - Faculty – Department of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales

Peer Review Advisory Panel:
(Chair) Dr Julia Bowman PhD, Senior Lecturer, Occupational Therapy Program, School of Science and Health
Professor Elizabeth Beattie, Director of the Dementia Collaborative Research Centre (DCRC) - Carers and Consumers (based within the School of Nursing at QUT).
Scott Fanker, Service Manager, Mental Health Services, Liverpool Hospital

The Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC) and the Nationa Mental Health Commission of Australia - MOU

Louise Bradley

The Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC) and the National Mental Health Commission of Australia have signed a formal Memorandum of Understanding to share knowledge and successful practices in mental health research.

MHCC President and CEO Louise Bradley signed the memorandum today while participating in two days of meetings with leading mental health organizations and Commissions from around the world in Sydney, Australia. Hosted by the National Mental Health Commission of Australia, the meetings focused on sharing best practices and experiences, providing the represented organizations with opportunities for collaboration that benefit not only their own countries, but international audiences as well.

The memorandum outlines how the two Commissions will actively seek opportunities to work together in areas such as mental health and the workplace, international knowledge exchange and stigma, with cross-promotion of work informed by the lived experience of those experiencing mental health issues,their families and support people, and the mental health sector.

“Improving the lives of people living with a mental health issue or illness is an urgent global priority. Learning about best practices and different approaches to mental health services and programs in other parts of the world and sharing information about our experiences in Canada will lead to improvements both at home and abroad,” said Bradley.

"As a national mental health commission that is just starting out, we have appreciated the exchange of ideas and experiences with the Mental Health Commission of Canada and are delighted to formalise this collaboration through an MoU," CEO and Commissioner of Australia's National Mental Health Commission, Ms Robyn Kruk, said. "We hope the Sydney meeting of international and national Commissioners and other leaders will be a seminal and useful event."

The MHCC and National Mental Health Commission of Australia began discussing options for formally sharing information last August.

Bradley also co-hosted an event at the Consulate General of Canada in Sydney, with Consul General Mario Ste-Marie, where she discussed the MHCC’s role as a catalyst for improving the mental health system and its initiatives related to workplace mental health, housing and homelessness, stigma and knowledge exchange.

Reducing access to the means of suicide

Reducing access to the means of suicide

By Samara McPhedran, Griffith University and Kairi Kolves, Griffith University

Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk’s recent announcement that barriers are to be erected on the Story Bridge in an effort to reduce suicides is very welcome. Studies consistently show that barriers have a high likelihood of reducing the number of suicides at a particular location, making them a useful and successful tool for tackling iconic suicide “hot spots”.  But the impacts of barriers on suicides at one location are not representative of what we can expect of means restriction (limiting access to methods of suicide) more generally, as a suicide prevention measure.

In fact, research into barriers and suicide can create an artificial and overly optimistic impression of the efficacy of means restriction.

Reducing access to lethal means

Means restriction may seem a simple way of preventing suicides. It includes measures such as erecting safety barriers on bridges, detoxifying domestic gas, and restricting access to firearms, poisons and drugs. It can be enacted through legislation, making it politically appealing.
However, society, culture, and context matter. Means restriction can be very effective, but it can also have quite different impacts across different locations and populations. Sometimes impacts may only be short term, rather than long-lasting. And what works to reduce suicides for one group or in one location may not work for another.

Measures to prevent suicide through means restriction must be evidence-based and designed to reach vulnerable people who are most at risk of suicide. They must also be integrated with a wide range of other suicide-prevention measures.

Importantly, means restriction is most likely to be effective in reducing overall suicide rates when it targets commonly used, highly lethal methods that account for a high percentage of suicide deaths overall.
But if the majority of suicides in a particular group or location involve methods that cannot be easily curtailed, means restriction is not likely to deliver any real changes in suicide numbers. Unfortunately, in Australia, the method that accounts for the highest percentage of suicides is hanging – a highly lethal method that is almost impossible to restrict. This highlights the importance of early identification and intervention, before an at-risk individual reaches a crisis point.

Method substitution

So if means restriction has the potential to reduce suicides using one method, will people just shift to another method?
One on hand, some suggest that if substitution happens, then restricting highly lethal methods may still reduce deaths. When substitution occurs, it may involve less lethal methods, increasing the chances of survival.
On the other hand, if a method with relatively low lethality is restricted, then it is possible that people who may have used that method will instead use a more lethal means, resulting in a lower likelihood of survival.
But the extent to which method substitution occurs, following means restriction, remains a topic of considerable debate. Different studies on means restriction have produced inconsistent findings. Some show that suicides using alternative methods rise substantially after means restriction, while others find little or no evidence that any substitution took place.
Also, the likelihood of substitution seems to vary across different groups and contexts. For instance, women seem more responsive to means restriction, while men appear more likely to substitute other methods.

Suicide prevention

So does means restriction save individual lives?
This question is perhaps the hardest to answer. Although it is possible to assess changes in suicide rates by particular methods for populations (such as the Australian population overall, or men, or young people), it is far more difficult to show this at the individual level.
To do this, we would need to know the numbers of people who were restricted from accessing one method of suicide who did, and did not, die by some other method of suicide.
Population-level data does not tell us this. All it tells us is whether deaths by particular methods change overall. This is useful information for policy evaluations, but it means we must be cautious not to conclude that specific lives that would otherwise have been lost, have necessarily been saved.
Population-level data also has its limits. Usually, other interventions occur alongside means restriction. Improved treatment for mental illnesses and reductions in risk factors for suicide, for example, also influence declines in suicide rates. Using a range of evidence-based interventions is good practice, but also makes it hard to distinguish the effects, or for that matter the cost-effectiveness, of each specific intervention.
Ultimately, if we are to strive for the best possible suicide prevention strategies, we need to recognise that the apparently simple measure of means restriction is far more complex than it may first seem. And perhaps most importantly, we must also keep trying to better understand what happens in the lives of those individuals that means restriction does not save.

If you or someone you know needs help, contact Lifeline’s 24-hour helpline on 13 11 14, SANE Australia on 1800 18 7263 or the Beyondblue Info Line on 1300 22 4636.

Samara McPhedran receives funding from the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, Queensland Health and the Australian Research Council.  Kairi Kolves receives funding from the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, Queensland Health and the Australian Research Council. She is on the advisory committee of the Lifeline Foundation and is a member of the headspace Outreach Teams to Schools expert advisory group.


This article was originally published at The Conversation. Read the original article.

Dr Philip Morris stands for election as President Elect of the RANZCP

Dr Philip Morris, the founder of the Australian and New Zealand Mental Health Association is standing for election as President Elect of the RANZCP.

Dr Morris is Professor at the Faculty of Health Sciences and Medicine, Bond University, and Visiting Professorial Fellow at the Centre for Forensic Excellence, Faculty of Law, Bond University.  Dr Morris has held professor positions in psychiatry at the University of Melbourne and the University of Queensland, and at the School of Health Sciences at Bond University.

Read more here.

MENTAL HEALTH FRAMEWORK HIGHLIGHTS ROLE OF PHARMACISTS

NEWS RELEASE

The Pharmaceutical Society of Australia – in partnership with mental health consumers, carers and care coordinators, mental health policy and practice experts and health professionals – has released a mental health framework which highlights and promotes the expertise of pharmacists and the roles they undertake as partners in mental health care.

National President of the PSA, Grant Kardachi, said the framework was intended to be used to articulate current and explore future pharmacist roles as partners to enhance mental health care service delivery to Australian consumers and carers.

“This framework will be used to engage with a variety of audiences including consumers, carers, mental health care organisations, health care practitioners and governments to promote the role of the pharmacist as a partner in the delivery of mental health care,” he said.

“While pharmacists recognise that medicines are not necessarily the primary or sole treatment option for mental illnesses, the 31.1 million mental health-related prescriptions in Australia in 2010-11, comprising 11% of all medicines subsidised under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, reflect that they are a significant modality of treatment.

“Of these, 86% of medicines were prescribed by general practitioners rather than psychiatrists. These figures emphasise the need and opportunity for pharmacist involvement in mental health care.”
Mr Kardachi said the framework focused on how pharmacists’ skills and experience could be used to improve quality use of medicines for consumers with a mental illness.

“Pharmacists have a strong primary health care role and, due to their accessibility, are often the first health professional contacted by a consumer with a health concern,” he said.

“Pharmacists are frequently consulted for advice on psychotropic medications and their accessibility and frequent contact with mental health consumers and carers means they are ideally placed to play a greater role in the management of mental illness or conditions.”

Mr Kardachi said the development of the framework was a collegiate effort and acknowledged the generous and collaborative contributions by individual experts and nominees of the following organisations: Australian College of Mental Health Nurses; Australian General Practice Network; Australian Psychological Society; Mental Health Council of Australia; Pharmaceutical Society of Australia; Pharmacy Board of Australia; The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists; The Pharmacy Guild of Australia; and The Society of Hospital Pharmacists of Australia.

Download the Mental Health Framework www.psa.org.au/archives/21010

Mental Health and the Australian Population

In the E‐Mental Health Strategy for Australia, released by the Federal Government in 2012, the following statistics were provided;

"Approximately 17.2 per cent or 3.8 million Australians are estimated to be affected by mental illness in any one year – meaning that they experience symptoms at diagnostic levels, for either brief or extended periods.  This estimate excludes dementia and alcohol/drug-related disorders, except where these are concurrent with a mental disorder. The figure rises to about 20 per cent, or 4.4 million people, when alcohol and drug-related conditions are included.

A further 15 per cent of the population have experienced a mental disorder previously in their lives but not had symptoms over the past 12 months at a level that would warrant a formal diagnosis.  In total, approximately one in three (32 per cent) of Australians will experience a mental illness during their lives.  When alcohol and drug use disorders are included, this figure rises to 45 per cent of the population.

Anxiety disorders and depression are the most common disorders, affecting approximately 9 per cent and 7 per cent, respectively, of the adult population each year.  Collectively referred to as ‘high prevalence’ illnesses, these disorders include diverse conditions (for example, post traumatic stress disorder, panic disorder, agoraphobia, obsessive compulsive disorder and depression), with differing treatment requirements and outcomes.

It is these disorders, in mild to moderate severity, that the evidence shows can be effectively treated through online programs.

Mental illness also includes other less common or ‘low prevalence’ conditions such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.  Together, these two disorders affect approximately 1 per cent of the adult population in any one year, and 2 per cent over the course of a lifetime.  Prevalence rates vary across the lifespan and are highest in the early adult years, the period during which people are usually completing education, establishing families and independent working lives."
 
The 14th International Mental Health Conference will focus on the complex mental health issues of Depression, Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder and Dementia. It will be held at Outrigger, Surfers Paradise on Monday the 5th and Tuesday the 6th of August 2013.  Optional workshops will be held on Wednesday the 7th of August.

Lewy body dementia

Dr James Galvin

Source: New Your Times

Most people have not heard of Lewy body dementia, even many health care professionals remain unfamiliar with the disorder.

Yet, “this is not an uncommon disease,” said Dr. James Galvin, a neurologist at NYU Langone Medical Center who has published extensively on the subject. He and other researchers helped the Lewy Body Dementia Association extrapolate from epidemiological surveys and come up with an estimate: About 1.3 million people — considerably more men than women — have Lewy body dementia, named for the scientist who identified these protein deposits in the brain.

You would never wish an Alzheimer’s diagnosis on anyone — yet it might be easier on caregivers like if their “patients” had that far more common form of dementia. Everybody’s heard of Alzheimer’s; lots of people know someone who has it. Doctors better understand the symptoms. Family members can more easily find support groups and programs.

Read the full story by Paula Span on the New York Times Blog here

The 14th International Mental Health Conference will be held at Outrigger, Surfers Paradise, in Queensland on Monday the 5th and Tuesday the 6th of August 2013.  Optional workshops will be held on Wednesday the 7th of August. The conference will focus on the complex mental health issues of Depression, Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder and Dementia

Successful Mental Health Approach To Teenage Alcohol Prevention

Dr Patricia Conrod

Targeted psychological interventions aimed at teenagers at risk of emotional and behavioural problems significantly reduce their drinking behaviour, and that of their schoolmates, according to the results from a large randomised controlled trial published in JAMA Psychiatry. The authors argue that the intervention could be administered in schools throughout the UK to help prevent teenage alcohol abuse.

The 'Adventure Trial' is led by Dr Patricia Conrod, King's College London's Institute of Psychiatry, in collaboration with the University of Montreal and Sainte-Justine University Hospital Center (Canada) and was commissioned by Action on Addiction.

Read the full article on Medical News Today

The Association to support Psychs on Bikes in 2013

The Big Ride in April 2013 will be from Bathurst to Sydney… via Queensland.


Psychs on Bikes is a Project involving mental health professionals riding motorbikes to raise money for charities.

Our motto is “Adventure before Dementia!”  The rides are open to any psychiatrist, psychologist, mental health nurse or bona fide mental health professional.

The object of the exercise will be to ride up one inland highway, visiting a number of towns as we go, then spend a full day in Maryborough on Queensland’s Fraser Coast hanging out at the Ulysses Club AGM, then head south down a different inland route stopping at a few more towns before ending up back in Sydney 9 days after leaving Bathurst... more details

Clear you diary NOW!

A Community led approach to Mental Health and Wellbeing

MindMatters, ‘Anangu Way’; A Community led approach to Mental Health and Wellbeing

The purpose of this paper is to share the MindMatters approach to working in Anangu communities in the Far North-West corner of South Australia and the Southern region of the Northern Territory.  (The term Anangu is a collective term that Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara people use to refer to themselves.)

Remote Indigenous communities experience significant levels of incidences and ongoing issues with young people and their mental health and wellbeing. Mainstream programs in this field remain bound to the coastal fringe of the nation, or do not reinvent in order to build community capacity for understanding, engagement and agency for change in their families, schools and communities.

An innovative approach to these concerns has been taken in the implementation of MindMatters in Anangu schools in South Australia and the Northern Territory to enable community led mental health and wellbeing.

This article describes the work that has occurred. It exemplifies the value of a respectful, strength-based paradigm that focuses on a community development approach. The outcomes of this work include local capacity building; ongoing development of quality resources in Pitjantjatjara language, and the emergence of agency for change. A flexible process and framework facilitated the implementation of this work.

Reproducible principles include the value of respecting and privileging contextual knowledge and capacity.  In doing so, Anangu educators have taken ownership of the program and a passion for bringing others along the MindMatters journey…Anangu way.

Paper presented by Sam Osborne, Senior Research Fellow, University of South Australia
Cooperative Research Centre for Remote Economic Participation at the 4th Australian Rural and Remote Mental Health Symposium, Adelaide (SA), 19-21 November 2012

• Download the full paper
• Submit an abstract for the 2013 Australian Rural and Remote Mental Health Symposium

Childhood Trauma and Neural Development. Indicators for Interventions with Special Reference to Rural and Remote Environments.

Dr. Pieter J Rossouw

This paper focuses on the effects of childhood trauma on healthy neural development. An alarming study of 10,000 adolescents indicates that one in every four to five youths meets the criteria of a severe impairment across the lifetime. Studies also indicate the positive effects of early interventions to enhance neural activation and facilitating resilience. 

Historical events and current logistical obstacles in rural and remote environments indicate significant challenges to address childhood trauma resulting in enhanced risk of long term violation of basic needs. The net result is detrimental neural development, compromised resilience and trans-generational deficit. Challenges are identified and intervention strategies suggested.    

Paper presented by Dr. Pieter J Rossouw, School of Psychology, School of Social Work and Human Services,The University of Queensland  at the 4th Australian Rural and Remote Mental Health Symposium, Adelaide (SA), 19-21 November 2012

• Download the full paper
• Submit a paper for the 2013 Australian Rural and Remote Mental Health Symposium

Has the suicide rate risen with the 2011 Queensland floods?

Prof Diego De Leo

This study compared the prevalence and characteristics of suicides following the January 2011 Queensland floods to the 11 years prior (for the period January-June) for two severely affected locations: Ipswich and Toowoomba. 

Findings showed no significant increase in suicide rates during the 6 months after the floods. This may be explained by the elevated level of social support and care available in this period, which protected residents against risk factors for suicide. Nonetheless, the floods may have a delayed effect on suicide mortality.

This highlights the importance of continued monitoring of suicidal behaviors and providing support to the people affected.

Comments:
Main findings:  In January 2011, several regions of Queensland were affected by extreme flash flooding, in what has been described as the worst natural disaster to hit the state in the last 30 years(1).

Previous research has suggested that individuals who fall victim to natural disasters may experience suicidal ideation or attempts shortly after the event(2). However, a recent review of 42 papers examining the relationship between natural disasters and fatal and non-fatal suicidal behaviours worldwide has indicated that non-fatal suicidal behaviour may decrease in the period following the event and increase sometime after the event, due to diminishing availability of support from the community and mental health care professionals over time(3).

The review further indicates that the increase in suicidal behaviour over time may be impacted by other life factors such as mental disorders, property damage and economic problems(3). Findings regarding fatal suicidal behaviour were much less consistent, with studies showing mixed results(3).
The current study evaluated the impact of the 2011 floods on suicide rates in Ipswich and Toowoomba, after a coronial inquest suggested that rates may increase in the areas most affected by the floods. The study compared rates in the six months after the floods, to the same six month period (January-June) in 2000-2010.

Suicide cases in these areas were identified using the Queensland Suicide Register (QSR), and crude suicide rates were calculated using estimated population data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics(4). Results of the current paper suggested that fatal suicidal behaviour did not increase in the six months following the event.  For Toowoomba in particular, suicide rates decreased following the floods.  While no suicide cases in Ipswich in 2011 mentioned the floods as a significant stressor preceding the death, one suicide case from Toowoomba did mention the floods as a possible contributing factor, however, this case also involved other negative life factors such as financial problems, depression and unemployment.

Implications:  Much of the current research analysing the impact of natural disasters on suicidal behaviours has been conducted overseas, with earthquakes being the most frequently studied disaster(3). While events such as earthquakes are rare in Australia, Australia is regularly affected by a number of other natural disasters, including floods, and the current study has built on existing literature by providing an analysis which is more relevant to the Australian context. Previous studies involving fatal suicidal behaviour have retrieved mixed results.

The current study lends support to the idea that fatal suicidal behaviours may decrease following a natural disaster, in a similar fashion to the decline consistently witnessed in non-fatal suicidal behaviours. However, more research is required in this area before a clear pattern over a longer period can be identified.

Research has suggested that suicidal behaviour may increase in the years following a natural disaster. As noted by the authors of the current study, to prevent a similar increase following the 2011 Queensland floods, it is imperative that continued mental health care and community support is made available to those individuals affected by the floods, particularly those who may be experiencing other life stressors such as mental illness or financial difficulties.

Endnotes
1. Queensland Government (2011). Operation Queenslander: The state community, economic and environmental recovery and reconstruction plan. Retrieved 09 January 2012 from http://www.qldreconstruction.org.au/state-plan
2. Chuang HL , Huang WC (2007). A re-examination of the suicide rates in Taiwan. Social Indicators Research 83, 465-485.
3. Kõlves K, Kõlves KE, De Leo D (2012). Natural disasters and suicidal behaviours: A systematic literature review. Journal of Affective Disorders.  Published online: 20 August 2012. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2012.07.037, 2012
4. Australian Bureau of Statistics (2000-2010). Population by age and sex, regions of Australia. Canberra, Australia: Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The paper was prepared by De Leo D, Too LS, Kõlves K, Milner A, Ide N (Australia).
Submitted by the Australian Institute for Suicide Research and Prevention at Griffith University