Townsville CQU students aim to alleviate overloaded mental health system

Aiming to bridge the gap between mental health demand and available psychologists, recent Townsville graduates are putting in the hard hours to ensure they are ready to hit the workforce.

Townsville psychology students

For Ayr resident Nikita Crosswell, the support of her university campus, staff and fellow students has been the reason for her weekly travel to Townsville for lectures and tutorials.

The 35-year-old, who received the highest grade for her written assessment in her cohort, is the first in her family to attend university and is also juggling the roles of partner and mother.

Aiming to bridge the gap between mental health demand and available psychologists, recent graduates from Central Queensland University’s Townsville campus have put in the hard hours to ensure they are ready to hit the workforce.

First-year psychology Nikita Crosswell

With many patients having to wait more than 12 weeks to receive care, the Australian Psychological Society has reported that one in three psychologists are unable to see new clients due to the large demand.

Lecturer Rebecca Wilcoxson has been working hard to create a supportive environment for students. Data shows that psychology students at universities in Australia report talking less to other students than any other students.

Local lecturer Dr Rebecca Wilcoxson

“As such, we risk training a whole new generation of psychologists who have been studying in isolation from other students. Here at the Townsville campus, though, we are turning that around by building a supportive community of students who enjoy connecting with one another and learning from each other.”

The federal government is delivering more than $800 million to mental health prevention in its most recent budget, with one of the deliverables being the establishment of 61 Medicare Mental Health Centres.

“The recent budget allocation will create more jobs for people trained in psychology, meaning our students are likely to pick up jobs in the field relatively quickly after graduating,” Dr Wilcoxson said.

Originally published as Townsville CQU students aim to alleviate overloaded mental health system