We’re mad.

Around half of all Australians will experience some form of mental ill health in their lifetime. Less than half of these people will access treatment.

These are people you know.

These are people you love.

It could be you.

Every day, seven people take their own lives, two hundred attempt to.

Every year, thousands of Australians are dying, millions are living unfulfilled and unproductive lives, and hundreds of thousands are being thrown into a life of poverty, exclusion and premature death.

The impact of mental ill health is far reaching - millions of family members, carers, friends and community members bear the burden of a broken system. We deserve better.

We’re angry.

The mental health system in our country is failing…

• It is fragmented and complex, requiring vulnerable people to navigate it alone;
• It responds too late, focussing on acute care and failing to give ample attention to prevention and early intervention measures
• It is using resources poorly, creating silos of workers and approaches; and
• It is failing to adequately evaluate its effectiveness, with no agreed or consistent national measures of efficacy.
• It often excludes family members and carers, leaving them uninformed and unsupported.

This failure is costing our country deeply, in lives and in dollars.

Enough is enough. We need more than reports, plans and promises. We need greater and more effective government investment in mental health in this country.

We deserve the same level of care for our mental health as our physical health, and we are getting nowhere near it – less than 7% of total health expenditure is dedicated to mental health, despite mental ill health accounting for 14% of Australia’s total health burden.

This is madness.

The fact that we are still in this situation is madness, because this crisis is solvable!

We have real solutions for mental health in Australia. We have every reason to be hopeful.

We have world-class research, innovation and evidence-based approaches, yet these remain sorely underfunded and inaccessible to most people.

It is time to end this madness.

We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reform our mental health system - to save, and improve the quality of millions of lives.

To seize this opportunity, we must make sure that mental health is a top priority for all politicians and political parties.

The Australians for Mental Health campaign exists to do just this!

Australians for Mental Health is a new, community led, national advocacy campaign that, ahead of the next Federal election, will empower Australians to compel all political parties to make mental ill health a key election issue, and to deliver real reform.

As a powerful and sustained community movement, this campaign will capture and harness the voices of everyday Australians to draw focus to the chronic shortage of funding and services for mental health in Australia.

The campaign will be fully integrated, centralised through a website and supported by a comprehensive online and offline strategy involving traditional and social media, collaborative partnerships, petitions, national and local activities, and events.

The campaign will empower and equip Australians to be the voice of change needed for real government action.

It is time for real change.

Australians for Mental Health is led by a group of everyday individuals with lived experience of mental ill health and of the failing mental health system. It is also informed by the vast expertise of mental health sector representatives.

The campaign is advocating for complete mental health system reform, which includes ensuring:

• Fair care – equal attention and investment in mental health as physical health
• Improved access for every person with mental ill health
• Clear pathways for treatment and support
• Prevention and early intervention
• Integration of services
• Technology and innovation

Together we can end this madness.

We’re calling on all Australians who have been impacted – directly or indirectly – by mental ill health, to come together and call for government to take mental health seriously and to grasp the opportunity to get mental health care right.

Together we can save lives and ensure the millions of Australians living with mental ill health can lead productive and fulfilling lives.

We are calling on you to help make this campaign a reality. We need you to join us. Get mad and pledge your support. Donate now to make this campaign happen.

With your contribution, we can make this campaign as powerful as possible. We are initially seeking $50,000 to get this campaign off the ground, but the more we can raise, the more we can do!

With $50,000 we can build a well-resourced campaign, take advantage of key promotional opportunities and consult campaigning and lobbying experts to help us further grow the reach and effectiveness of our campaign strategy.

With $100,000 we can significantly grow Australians for Mental Health, boost our website with exciting digital campaign functions like petitions, direct communication to MPs and volunteer management and develop eye-catching collateral that will help spread our key messages into more communities around Australia.

With $150,000 we can create and distribute a powerful community service announcement to spread the campaign far and wide

With $200,000 we can facilitate and support a range of national events and activations such as vigils, local forums, a day of action and much more!

Every dollar can achieve great things for this campaign! There are also some fabulous rewards to thank you for your support. Or if you simply wish to donate and don't want to bother with the rewards, just use the donate button… with our huge thanks!

So…go on!

Get Mad.

Join the Movement.

Donate Now.

Find out more about us
Visit our website: www.australiansformentalhealth.org.au
Media enquiries:
E: [email protected] P: (03) 9682 0259