General practitioners' response to depression and anxiety in the Australian community: A preliminary analysis

Abstract

Objectives: To examine the uptake by general practitioners (GPs) of the five key components of the Better Outcomes in Mental Health Care (BOiMHC) initiative: education and training for GPs; the three-step mental health process; focussed psychological strategies; access to allied health services; and access to psychiatrist support. Setting: All Australian states and territories during the first 15 months of the initiative (1 July 2002-30 September 2003). Design: Retrospective survey of de-identified registration data held by the General Practice Mental Health Standards Collaboration (training uptake), de-identified Health Insurance Commission (HIC) billing data (provision of the three-step me..