8 Mental Health Indicators and Substance Use: A Cross Sectional Survey of Secondary School Children in New South Wales, Australia

We examined parent views of health professionals and satisfaction toward use of a child health home-based record and the influence on parent engagement with the record. A cross-sectional survey of 202 parents was conducted across New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions were conducted to identify predictors of parent engagement with the record book using odds ratio (OR) at 95% confidence interval (CI) and 0.05 significance level. Parents reported utilizing the record book regularly for routine health checks (63.4%), reading the record (37.2%), and writing information (40.1%). The majority of parents (91.6%) were satisfied with the record. Parents perceived nurses/midwives as most likely to use/refer to the record (59.4%) compared to pediatricians (34.1%), general practitioners (GP) (33.7%), or other professionals (7.9%). Parents were less likely to read the record book if they perceived the GP to have a lower commitment (Adjusted OR = 0.636, 95% CI 0.429–0.942). Parents who perceived nurses/midwives’ willingness to use/refer to the record were more likely to take the record book for routine checks (Adjusted OR = 0.728, 95% CI 0.536–0.989). Both parent perceived professionals’ attitude and satisfaction significantly influenced information input in the home-based record. The results indicate that improvements in parent engagement with a child health home-based record is strongly associated with health professionals’ commitment to use/refer to the record during consultations/checks.

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A cross-sectional survey of prevalence and correlates of suicidal ideation and suicide attempts among prisoners in New South Wales, Australia

BMC Public Health ◽

10.1186/1471-2458-12-14 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 41

Author(s):

Sarah Larney ◽

Libby Topp ◽

Devon Indig ◽

Colmán O'Driscoll ◽

David Greenberg

Keyword(s):

Suicidal Ideation ◽

Suicide Attempts ◽

New South ◽

New South Wales ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

South Wales

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Mental Health Status of Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal Australian Prisoners

Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry ◽

10.1080/00048670701261210 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 41 (5) ◽

pp. 429-435 ◽

Cited By ~ 42

Author(s):

Tony Butler ◽

Stephen Allnutt ◽

Azar Kariminia ◽

David Cain

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Mental Illness ◽

New South ◽

New South Wales ◽

Composite International Diagnostic Interview ◽

Vulnerable Groups ◽

Aboriginal Woman ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Aboriginal Women ◽

South Wales

Objective: To compare the mental health of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal prisoners in New South Wales. Methods: The sample consisted of a cross-sectional random sample of sentenced prisoners, and a consecutive sample of reception prisoners. The sample was drawn from 29 correctional centres (27 male, two female) across New South Wales. Overall, 1208 men (226 Aboriginal), and 262 women (51 Aboriginal) participated in the study. Mental illness was detected using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI-A) and a number of other screening measures incorporated into the programme. Results: No differences were detected in mental illness between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal men, apart from depression, which was lower in the latter group. Aboriginal woman were more likely than non-Aboriginal women to screen positive for symptoms of psychosis in the prior 12 months and have a higher 1 month and 12 month prevalence of affective disorder; they also had higher psychological distress scores. Suicidal thoughts and attempts were the same in both groups. Conclusions: These findings confirm that the demand for mental health services in prisons is considerable, and that Aboriginal women are one of the most vulnerable groups. Services and programmes providing an alternative to incarceration are needed, as are culturally sensitive approaches to treatment.

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