Mental health
Mental health-related committees
Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Data Governance Forum
Background
The Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Data Governance Forum (MHSPDGF) has been established to oversee and facilitate the implementation of the data and performance measurement commitments specified in the National Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Agreement (the National Agreement).
MHSPDGF brings together Commonwealth, state and territory health representatives and key stakeholders including peak bodies, key organisations and lived experience representatives. The scope of the MHSPDGF is to agree on authorising frameworks and systems for data sharing and linking, improve national consistency in data collections, agree on appropriate measurement and monitoring methodologies to support evaluation of services and the mental health system and to provide technical advice on other relevant data and outcome activities.
MHSPDGF reports to the Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Senior Officials Group as part of the National Agreement Governance Structure.
Under the National Agreement governance structure, the Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Data Governance Forum will:
- Agree on authorising frameworks and systems for data sharing and linking activities undertaken under the National Agreement.
- Improve national consistency in Commonwealth, state and territory data collections relevant to initiatives in the National Agreement and agree minimum data specifications for jointly funded programs.
- Agree appropriate measurement and monitoring methodologies, including priority Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), to support evaluation of services and the mental health system against objectives and outcomes identified in the National Agreement.
- Provide technical advice on other data and outcomes activities relevant to initiatives in the National Agreement, including the National Mental Health Service Planning Framework.
Membership
MHSPDGF bring together specialist and diverse knowledge holders. MHSPDGF members and observers bring with them a wide range of experience in issues related to mental health and suicide prevention.
The membership of MHSPDGF is endorsed annually by MHSPSO. The current membership of the MHSPDGF consist of standing members, which are parties to the National Agreement, or where representation is specified in the National Agreement:
- Co-Chair, Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing
- Co-Chair, NSW (nominated by state and territory health departments)
- State and territory health department representatives
- Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care
- Primary Health Network representatives
- A mental health consumer representative
- A mental health carer representative
- A representative with lived experience of suicide
- A First Nations lived experience representative
- A First Nations data representative.
The MHSPDGF also includes appointed observers, which are agencies with the expertise necessary to progress the work the MHSPDGF oversees. Appointed observers:
- Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
- National Mental Health Commission
- National Suicide Prevention Office
- Australian Bureau of Statistics
- Mental Health Australia
- Suicide Prevention Australia
Secretariat
Secretariat support is provided by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Mental Health Information & Evidence Refinement & Validation Unit, Canberra. The MHSPDGF secretariat can be contacted through [email protected].
Mental Health Data Standards Technical Advisory Group
Background
The AIHW’s Mental Health Data Standards Technical Advisory Group (MHDSTAG) has been established to provide advice to the AIHW in relation to its work developing and maintaining mental health data standards. This takes place in the context of the National Health Information Agreement and to support data development commitments under the National Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Agreement.
Terms of Reference
The MHDSTAG will support the AIHW to conduct its work that relates to development and maintenance of mental health data standards. This includes:
- Providing advice to AIHW on maintenance and further development of national mental health data collections and working within national requirements and processes to ensure appropriate ongoing maintenance and support of those National Minimum Data Sets (NMDS), National Best Endeavour Data Sets (NBEDS), technical specifications for relevant indicators and data elements supporting those indicators.
- Providing expert advice to the AIHW on issues and projects it has been tasked with by the Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Data Governance Forum (MHSPDGF), including on expansion of existing mental health related collections, establishment of new collections and data flows, and development of new analysis methodologies in line with agreed priorities in the National Agreement.
- Providing advice to the National Health Data and Information Standards Committee (NHDISC) on mental health related metadata or as requested.
The MHDSTAG does not have decision-making authority for mental health data collections and data standards. However, advice from the MHDSTAG on the technical feasibility of any changes and new data items are anticipated to facilitate decision-making by other groups.
Membership
MHDSTAG membership comprises of:
- The Chair (AIHW).
- Representation from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).
- State and territory jurisdictional representatives.
- Representation from the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care.
- Representation from the Independent Health and Aged Care Pricing Authority.
At the discretion of the Chair, Observers may be invited to attend meetings. They can contribute at meetings, by contributing to discussions, by making oral presentations, by distributing documents at meetings through the chair, or by engaging in other activities as appropriate and as approved by the Chair.
Secretariat
Secretariat support is provided by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Mental Health Information & Evidence Refinement & Validation Unit, Canberra. The MHDSTAG secretariat can be contacted through [email protected].
National mental health landscape
National Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Agreement
The National Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Agreement (the National Agreement) came into effect in March 2022, and sets out the shared intention of the Commonwealth, state and territory governments to work in partnership to improve the mental health of all Australians, reduce the rate of suicide toward zero, and ensure the sustainability and enhance the services of the Australian mental health and suicide prevention system.
The National Agreement principles and objectives aim to:
- Improve the availability and use of data and reporting to improve accountability and transparency.
- Build an evidence base that sustains ongoing system improvement, including addressing evidence gaps and promoting the use of data.
- Improve data collection and data sharing, with a focus on national consistency and balanced with reducing burdensome and duplicative data collection, sharing and reporting.
- Support national data linkage and sharing of linked data, for use in policy, planning, commissioning, system management, evaluation and performance reporting.
- Drive improvement of Australia’s mental health and suicide prevention system including through making use of national data assets to understand system performance.
The Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Data Governance Forum (MHSPDGF) has been established under the National Agreement governance structure. The MHSPDGF will oversee and facilitate implementation of the data and performance measurement commitments specified in the National Agreement.
The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) was dissolved in May 2020 and was the primary Australian intergovernmental governance structure. Under the COAG governance structure, there were several mental health data committees and subcommittees that ceased when COAG was dissolved.
The Mental Health Information Strategy Standing Committee (MHISSC), established by the Australian Health Ministers' Advisory Council (AHMAC), provided advice on information and data issues to the Mental Health Principal Committee (MHPC) that addressed the information requirements of the National Mental Health Strategy.
The National Mental Health Performance Subcommittee (NMHPSC) was established by MHISSC to oversee the development and implementation of a national performance measurement framework for mental health services, to support benchmarking for mental health service improvement, and provide national information on mental health system performance.
The National Mental Health Data Set Subcommittee (NMHDS SC) was established by MHISSC to oversee the development and implementation of the National Minimum Data Sets for mental health care.
National mental health committee publications
Under the auspices of COAG, MHISSC and its subcommittees authored a range of publications relating to national data and information.
Some key mental health publications are listed below.
National Mental Health Performance Framework (58KB DOCX)
The objective of the National Health Performance Framework is to improve all health outcomes for Australians living with mental illness and ensure sustainability of the Australian health system.
National Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Information Priorities 3rd edition (346KB PDF)
This document sets out a vision for national mental health information in Australia for the coming decade. It outlines key priorities for development and provides strategies to achieve this vision and works alongside a range of other documents and strategies. Together they aim to ensure that mental health consumers and carers and people with lived experience of suicide are central to the way in which services are planned, delivered and evaluated.
Key Performance Indicator for Australian Public Mental Health Services, 3rd edition (3.1MB PDF)
Collates the development and activity delivering the most current set, and specifications, of KPIs for use in Australia's public mental health system.
Archived publications
Fourth national mental health plan: measurement strategy (2011) (4.6MB PDF)
Mental Health Statement of Rights and Responsibilities (2012) (561KB PDF)
National Mental Health Workforce Literature Review (2011) (1.5MB PDF)
National Mental Health Workforce Plan (2011) (923KB PDF)
National Mental Health Workforce Strategy (2011) (1.1MB PDF)
Carers identified (2010) (1.3MB PDF)
Fourth national mental health plan: implementation strategy (2010) (187KB PDF)
Framework for reducing adverse medication events in mental health services (2009) (122KB PDF)
National mental health benchmarking project: evaluation report July 2009 (2009) (5.5MB PDF)
State and territory jurisdictional reports: December 2010 (2010) (1.0MB PDF)