Healthy Minds high school trial to test psychological skills program developed in SA

AN SA-DEVELOPED program will see psychologists teaching weekly lessons to school students in a federally funded trial aimed at tackling depression, anxiety and eating disorders.

Pembroke Middle School Year 8 students Scarlett Darley, 14, Osman Bademeigil, 14, and Adele Parkin, 14, with Dr Tom Nehmy, at the Kensington Park campus. Picture: Bianca De Marchi

GROUNDBREAKING South Australian “psychological immunisation” for teenagers – a program to build emotional wellness and resilience – will be rolled out in a national trial.

Developed by Adelaide-based clinical psychologist Dr Tom Nehmy, the Healthy Minds Program will be taught in 10 high schools nationally in a trial designed to prevent and reduce the risk of depression, anxiety and eating disorders in adolescents.

Based on research done at Flinders University, schools will soon be invited to apply to participate in the trial.

It will include eight weekly group sessions delivered by a psychologist to Year 8 students, corresponding classroom lessons, parent modules and teacher training.

Mr Nehmy said the program, which has received federal funding, was inspired by his observations as a clinical psychologist.

“I was routinely teaching all my clients a core set of fundamental psychological skills, regardless of their presenting problem,’’ he said.

“Then it occurred to me that, as a society, we tend to wait until people are in therapy before we teach them the skills of being mentally healthy.

“I thought, ‘What would happen if we routinely taught young people the skills of managing their own mental health’ … Could we prevent the onset of problems like anxiety and depression? I wanted to know if broad psychological immunisation was possible.”

The program includes weekly group presentations, coupled with weekly classroom lessons on healthy thinking, understanding emotions, managing stress, challenging unhelpful perfectionism and building self-compassion.

Pembroke School was the first in Australia to implement the Healthy Minds program.

Principal, Luke Thomson, said the “excellent” research-based program had been a vital part of the Middle School curriculum since 2013.

Federal Minister for Health Greg Hunt said it was estimated that, in 2015, about 560,000 children and adolescents aged 4-17 years experienced a mental illness: “The program aims to teach adolescents to become effective self-managers of their wellbeing through helpful thinking, understanding emotions, challenging perfectionism, stress management and self-compassion.”

Government high schools interested in participating can register their interest at [e-mail].

Originally published as Healthy Minds high school trial to test psychological skills program developed in SA