Is the prevalence of mental illness increasing in Australia? Evidence from national health surveys and administrative data, 2001–2014
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OBJECTIVES: To assess changes in the prevalence rates of probable common mental disorders (CMDs) and in rates of disability support pensions (DSPs) for people with psychiatric disorders in Australia between 2001 and 2014. DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Secondary analysis of data from five successive Australian national health surveys of representative samples of the working age population (18-65 years of age) and national data on DSP recipients. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Prevalence of probable CMDs with very high symptom level (defined by a Kessler Psychological Distress Scale [K10] score of 30 or more) or with high symptom level (K10 score of 22 or more); the proportion of working age Australians receiving DSPs for psychiatric conditions. RESULTS: There was no change in the prevalence rate of probable CMDs with very high symptom levels between 2001 and 2014, but a slight decrease in the prevalence of probable CMDs with high symptoms levels, particularly among those under 45 years of age. Over the same period, the proportion of working age individuals receiving DSPs for psychiatric conditions increased by 51% (for trend, P < 0.001), equivalent to one additional DSP for every 182 working age Australians. CONCLUSIONS: Contrary to popular belief, the prevalence of probable CMDs in Australia was stable between 2001 and 2014. However, the proportion of the working age population receiving DSPs for psychiatric conditions increased dramatically over the same period. This conundrum is a major public health problem that should be further examined.
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While reported loss of function and disability due to mental disorders has increased, the prevalence of serious mental disorders has remained fairly stable in reports from different countries.
“While reported loss of function and disability due to mental disorders has increased, the prevalence of serious mental disorders has remained fairly stable in reports from different countries [32–34]”
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“The majority of mental ill-health seen in the workforce is due to common mental disorders, most notably, depression and anxiety [6–8], accounting for up to 12% of the Australian working population [9].”
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Deady, M., Johnston, D., Milne, D., Glozier, N., Peters, D., Calvo, R., & Harvey, S. (2018) · JMIR mHealth and uHealth · doi:10.2196/11661 · Cited by 72 · see citing works
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Kvestad, C. A., Holte, I. R., Reitan, S. K., Chiappa, C. S., Helle, G. K., Skjervold, A. E., Rosenlund, A. M. A., Watne, Ø., Brattland, H., Helle, J., et al. (2024) · Trials · doi:10.1186/s13063-024-08028-6 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
- Authors
- Harvey, S. B., Deady, M., Wang, M., Mykletun, A., Butterworth, P., Christensen, H., & Mitchell, P. B.
- Affiliations
- Black Dog Institute (AU)
- UNSW Sydney (AU)
- Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NO)
- The University of Melbourne (AU)
- Corresponding author
- Harvey, Samuel B
- ORCID
- Venue
- Medical Journal of Australia
- Publisher
- AMPCo
- Published
- 2017-06
- Volume
- 206
- Issue
- 11
- Pages
- 490-493
- ISSN
- 0025-729X (ISSN-L)
- 1326-5377
- OpenAlex
- W2625577268
- Cited by
- 79
- References
- 18
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 14 · 2019: 13 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 3
- FWCI
- 14.10
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- figshare.com
- Licence
- Locations
- The Medical Journal of Australia (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- ANU Open Research (Australian National University) (submittedVersion)
- Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health Treatment and Access
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Workplace Health and Well-being
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Schizophrenia research and treatment
- Keywords
- common mental disorders, prevalence of mental disorders, Disability Support Pension, psychiatric disability, psychological distress, working-age population, Australia
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Australia, Mental Disorders, Disability Evaluation, Female, Health Surveys, Humans, Insurance Claim Review, Male, Middle Aged, Pensions, Prevalence, Young Adult
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