The National Health Priority Areas Report on Mental Health defined mental health as 'the capacity of individuals and groups to interact with one another and the environment, in ways that promote subjective wellbeing, optimal development and the use of cognitive, affective and relational abilities'. A diverse range of social, environmental, biological and psychological factors can impact on an individual's mental health. In turn, people can develop symptoms and behaviours that are distressing to themselves or others, and interfere with their social functioning and capacity to negotiate daily life. These symptoms and behaviours may require treatment or rehabilitation, even hospitalisation.
The National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing of Adults was conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics in 1997 using a nationally representative sample of 10,600 adults.
18% of survey respondents reported that they had experienced the symptoms of a mental disorder at some time during the twelve-month period before interview. Women were more likely than men to have reported the symptoms of anxiety disorders (12% of women compared to 7% of men). Women were more likely to have reported affective disorders, such as depression (7% of women compared with 4% of men), and young women reported the highest rates (11% for those women aged 18-24). Men were more than twice as likely to have reported the symptoms of substance use disorders (11% of men compared with 4% of women). Young people are much more likely to report a mental disorder, and there is a substantial and steady decline in prevalence across age groups. Young men reported the highest rate of substance use disorder, at 22% for those men aged 18-24.
Further summaries of results from this survey are presented in the Institutional Mental Health Services in Australia and the National Health Priority Areas Report on Mental Health publications.
The National Minimum Data Sets (NMDSs) for Mental Health Care are a set of mental health care-related data elements that have been agreed for collection each year by Australian State and Territory governments. A fundamental strength inherent in any NMDS is that all data element definitions have been agreed in detail by the Health Data Standards Committee and the Statistical Information Management Committee to ensure that they are consistent with national health data standards. This provides a mechanism by which the data set can attain high levels of internal consistency and comparability.
The NMDSs for Mental Health Care are composed of four component data sets:
Specific details on individual data elements in the NMDSs can be found in AIHW's Metadata Online Registry METeOR.
The NMDSs for Mental Health Care data are collected by State and Territory health authorities from their mental health care services. This collection occurs over a financial year. The data are collated and validated by State and Territory health authorities prior to supply of the data sets to the AIHW.
Once at the Institute, the data undergo an additional series of agreed validation processes and preparation for analysis. The NMDS data are formally released and published annually in the Mental Health Services in Australia publication series.
State and Territory health authorities supply the AIHW with NMDS data on their mental health care patients and clients. The data supplied to the AIHW does not include identifying information such as names and addresses.
In addition, the NMDS data collated by AIHW is protected under specific AIHW legislation. This provides a range of strict safeguards in terms of security, accountability to data providers and confidentiality.