‘Like hunting for unicorns’: Australians on the search for adequate, affordable mental healthcare
Countless inquiries have found the same problems afflicting the mental health system, but cost and access barriers still leave those seeking and providing care in despair
Many Australians experience the country’s mental health system as inadequate, dangerous and financially punishing, saying they often feel unsafe in hospitals, are dismissed by health professionals and are hit with prohibitive costs that government subsidies do not come close to covering.
And practitioners in turn have spoken of burnout and their frustration with misplaced funding, inadequate quick fixes, overmedication of patients and inconsistencies and duplication in the system, while acknowledging that many seeking help find the system “deeply traumatic”.
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Too often the people most in need of ongoing psychiatric care are unable to afford the fees of the specialist
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I am dismayed at how much money can be poured into medical interventions and equipment
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