Accessibility and quality of mental health services in rural and remote Australia

The NFF asserts that all Australians should have equitable access to appropriate health services, regardless of their geographical location. As such, funding models for rural health should ensure equity of access to health professionals and recognise the higher costs of operating in regional, rural and remote areas. Currently there is a significant lack of access to mental health services in rural and remote communities, and significant delays between the time of referral and availability of those services. It will be important for mental health services and capacity to develop in sync with regions such as Northern Australia as their population grows.