Victorian teen mental health crisis surge revealed
Victoria’s teen mental health shadow pandemic continues to worsen, according to a confidential Andrews government report.
A confidential report for the Andrews government has described the mental health pandemic gripping teenagers and young adults as a “major concern”, and warns “demand for mental health services continues to be substantially higher” than the previous two years.
The Victorian Agency for Health Information report reveals that on average 336 children and teenagers were admitted to hospital every week in the six weeks to June 6, 2021, suffering a mental health emergency.
The tragic case numbers for children aged up to 17 is a 46 per cent increase on the same period in 2020 and a 37 per cent rise on 2019 levels, the report states.
The VAHI report confirms escalating mental health trauma linked to the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdowns to control the virus continued to surge after Victoria was plunged into a fourth shutdown on May 27.
The sharpest increases in cases among children and teens has been recorded in the serious “intentional self-harm/suicidal ideation” category, where an average of 154.5 cases every week for the six weeks to June 6 were rushed to hospital emergency departments – a 72 per cent increase on the same period in 2020 and a 61 per cent increase on 2019.
The most serious category, in which teenagers required resuscitation and emergency treatment, also soared in this six-week period, with a weekly average of 37.5 cases – a 76 per cent increase on 2020 and a 145 per cent increase on 2019. The VAHI reports are not released publicly and doctors who receive a document in error are asked to “destroy” it.
The Australian has obtained several reports, which reveal the full extent of the so-called mental health shadow pandemic. The June 6 VAHI report, obtained under Freedom of Information laws by opposition mental health spokeswoman Emma Kealy, confirms the crisis escalated as Melbourne became the world’s most locked-down city. The Australian revealed on Tuesday that Mental Health Minister James Merlino was briefed by his department that two suicides linked to job losses had occurred shortly after the government ordered the fourth lockdown on May 27.
“These revelations are a disturbing reflection of the gross negligence of a Premier and minister who knew the impact Labor’s Covid response was having on Victorian lives, but chose not to act,” Ms Kealy said.
“The Victorian families who lost loved ones in Daniel Andrews’ lockdowns or those who are still struggling to live with the mental health impacts today will be sickened by the Premier bragging that Labor’s Covid response has been a ‘triumph’.
“Victorians deserve to know that mental health support will be there, when they need it, but a shortage of workers is driving long delays for treatment.”
The government announced a $3.8bn funding boost for mental health services in the state budget, with much of the money dedicated to opening new acute treatment facilities for teens.
Since June, the government has spent $42m boosting mental health services and said the Office of Chief Psychiatrist investigated every death by suicide and reported back to the minister.
If you or someone you know is at risk of suicide, call Lifeline (13 11 14) or the Suicide Call Back Service (1300 659 467), or see a doctor.
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