Latest news with #AnneRuston
West Australian
6 days ago
- Health
- West Australian
Clinics axed as mental health patients count cost
Public psychology services could soon become more stretched as Australia's largest private hospital operator says it will close the majority of its mental health clinics. The announcement comes as new government data shows more people are delaying treatment for mental illness due to financial pressures. Ramsay Health Care will shut 17 of its 20 psychology clinics across the nation by the end of August to create a "more flexible and sustainable model" of mental health care. The largest private provider of psychology services, Ramsay says there will be no change to inpatient mental health services at their facilities. "We are working closely with our psychologists to ensure every client is supported and has continuity of care," the company said in a statement. Clinics in Cairns, Charlestown in NSW and Joondalup in WA will remain open. The mass closures come as the government mental health body reveals more patients are putting off mental health treatment because of financial concerns. The National Mental Health Commission Report Card for 2024, released on Thursday, says 24.6 per cent of people either delayed or did not see a psychologist or psychiatrist due to cost, up from 12 per cent in 2020/21. Financial stress is also an increasing cause of mental illness, with the report showing the rate of people finding it "difficult to cope" on their income doubling to 34 per cent from November 2020. The rising rates of people struggling with their mental health as a result of cost-of-living pressures has led to opposition calls for the federal government to make mental health a "national priority". "This government has cut Medicare mental health funding in half," opposition health spokeswoman Anne Ruston said in a statement. "The Albanese government has completely neglected mental health and suicide prevention over the last three years." Health Minister Mark Butler and Assistant Minister for Mental Health Emma McBride have been contacted for comment.
Perth Now
6 days ago
- Health
- Perth Now
Clinics axed as mental health patients count cost
Public psychology services could soon become more stretched as Australia's largest private hospital operator says it will close the majority of its mental health clinics. The announcement comes as new government data shows more people are delaying treatment for mental illness due to financial pressures. Ramsay Health Care will shut 17 of its 20 psychology clinics across the nation by the end of August to create a "more flexible and sustainable model" of mental health care. The largest private provider of psychology services, Ramsay says there will be no change to inpatient mental health services at their facilities. "We are working closely with our psychologists to ensure every client is supported and has continuity of care," the company said in a statement. Clinics in Cairns, Charlestown in NSW and Joondalup in WA will remain open. The mass closures come as the government mental health body reveals more patients are putting off mental health treatment because of financial concerns. The National Mental Health Commission Report Card for 2024, released on Thursday, says 24.6 per cent of people either delayed or did not see a psychologist or psychiatrist due to cost, up from 12 per cent in 2020/21. Financial stress is also an increasing cause of mental illness, with the report showing the rate of people finding it "difficult to cope" on their income doubling to 34 per cent from November 2020. The rising rates of people struggling with their mental health as a result of cost-of-living pressures has led to opposition calls for the federal government to make mental health a "national priority". "This government has cut Medicare mental health funding in half," opposition health spokeswoman Anne Ruston said in a statement. "The Albanese government has completely neglected mental health and suicide prevention over the last three years." Health Minister Mark Butler and Assistant Minister for Mental Health Emma McBride have been contacted for comment.
The Advertiser
6 days ago
- Health
- The Advertiser
Clinics axed as mental health patients count cost
Public psychology services could soon become more stretched as Australia's largest private hospital operator says it will close the majority of its mental health clinics. The announcement comes as new government data shows more people are delaying treatment for mental illness due to financial pressures. Ramsay Health Care will shut 17 of its 20 psychology clinics across the nation by the end of August to create a "more flexible and sustainable model" of mental health care. The largest private provider of psychology services, Ramsay says there will be no change to inpatient mental health services at their facilities. "We are working closely with our psychologists to ensure every client is supported and has continuity of care," the company said in a statement. Clinics in Cairns, Charlestown in NSW and Joondalup in WA will remain open. The mass closures come as the government mental health body reveals more patients are putting off mental health treatment because of financial concerns. The National Mental Health Commission Report Card for 2024, released on Thursday, says 24.6 per cent of people either delayed or did not see a psychologist or psychiatrist due to cost, up from 12 per cent in 2020/21. Financial stress is also an increasing cause of mental illness, with the report showing the rate of people finding it "difficult to cope" on their income doubling to 34 per cent from November 2020. The rising rates of people struggling with their mental health as a result of cost-of-living pressures has led to opposition calls for the federal government to make mental health a "national priority". "This government has cut Medicare mental health funding in half," opposition health spokeswoman Anne Ruston said in a statement. "The Albanese government has completely neglected mental health and suicide prevention over the last three years." Health Minister Mark Butler and Assistant Minister for Mental Health Emma McBride have been contacted for comment. Public psychology services could soon become more stretched as Australia's largest private hospital operator says it will close the majority of its mental health clinics. The announcement comes as new government data shows more people are delaying treatment for mental illness due to financial pressures. Ramsay Health Care will shut 17 of its 20 psychology clinics across the nation by the end of August to create a "more flexible and sustainable model" of mental health care. The largest private provider of psychology services, Ramsay says there will be no change to inpatient mental health services at their facilities. "We are working closely with our psychologists to ensure every client is supported and has continuity of care," the company said in a statement. Clinics in Cairns, Charlestown in NSW and Joondalup in WA will remain open. The mass closures come as the government mental health body reveals more patients are putting off mental health treatment because of financial concerns. The National Mental Health Commission Report Card for 2024, released on Thursday, says 24.6 per cent of people either delayed or did not see a psychologist or psychiatrist due to cost, up from 12 per cent in 2020/21. Financial stress is also an increasing cause of mental illness, with the report showing the rate of people finding it "difficult to cope" on their income doubling to 34 per cent from November 2020. The rising rates of people struggling with their mental health as a result of cost-of-living pressures has led to opposition calls for the federal government to make mental health a "national priority". "This government has cut Medicare mental health funding in half," opposition health spokeswoman Anne Ruston said in a statement. "The Albanese government has completely neglected mental health and suicide prevention over the last three years." Health Minister Mark Butler and Assistant Minister for Mental Health Emma McBride have been contacted for comment. Public psychology services could soon become more stretched as Australia's largest private hospital operator says it will close the majority of its mental health clinics. The announcement comes as new government data shows more people are delaying treatment for mental illness due to financial pressures. Ramsay Health Care will shut 17 of its 20 psychology clinics across the nation by the end of August to create a "more flexible and sustainable model" of mental health care. The largest private provider of psychology services, Ramsay says there will be no change to inpatient mental health services at their facilities. "We are working closely with our psychologists to ensure every client is supported and has continuity of care," the company said in a statement. Clinics in Cairns, Charlestown in NSW and Joondalup in WA will remain open. The mass closures come as the government mental health body reveals more patients are putting off mental health treatment because of financial concerns. The National Mental Health Commission Report Card for 2024, released on Thursday, says 24.6 per cent of people either delayed or did not see a psychologist or psychiatrist due to cost, up from 12 per cent in 2020/21. Financial stress is also an increasing cause of mental illness, with the report showing the rate of people finding it "difficult to cope" on their income doubling to 34 per cent from November 2020. The rising rates of people struggling with their mental health as a result of cost-of-living pressures has led to opposition calls for the federal government to make mental health a "national priority". "This government has cut Medicare mental health funding in half," opposition health spokeswoman Anne Ruston said in a statement. "The Albanese government has completely neglected mental health and suicide prevention over the last three years." Health Minister Mark Butler and Assistant Minister for Mental Health Emma McBride have been contacted for comment. Public psychology services could soon become more stretched as Australia's largest private hospital operator says it will close the majority of its mental health clinics. The announcement comes as new government data shows more people are delaying treatment for mental illness due to financial pressures. Ramsay Health Care will shut 17 of its 20 psychology clinics across the nation by the end of August to create a "more flexible and sustainable model" of mental health care. The largest private provider of psychology services, Ramsay says there will be no change to inpatient mental health services at their facilities. "We are working closely with our psychologists to ensure every client is supported and has continuity of care," the company said in a statement. Clinics in Cairns, Charlestown in NSW and Joondalup in WA will remain open. The mass closures come as the government mental health body reveals more patients are putting off mental health treatment because of financial concerns. The National Mental Health Commission Report Card for 2024, released on Thursday, says 24.6 per cent of people either delayed or did not see a psychologist or psychiatrist due to cost, up from 12 per cent in 2020/21. Financial stress is also an increasing cause of mental illness, with the report showing the rate of people finding it "difficult to cope" on their income doubling to 34 per cent from November 2020. The rising rates of people struggling with their mental health as a result of cost-of-living pressures has led to opposition calls for the federal government to make mental health a "national priority". "This government has cut Medicare mental health funding in half," opposition health spokeswoman Anne Ruston said in a statement. "The Albanese government has completely neglected mental health and suicide prevention over the last three years." Health Minister Mark Butler and Assistant Minister for Mental Health Emma McBride have been contacted for comment.
The Guardian
6 days ago
- Science
- The Guardian
Effects of marine heatwave driving ‘foreseeable' SA algal bloom could rival black summer fires, scientists warn
Scientists are warning the wildlife impacts of a marine heatwave that has driven a catastrophic algal bloom off South Australia are likely to be equivalent to those from the black summer bushfires, and demand a similar response from governments. Experts from five Australian universities say 'one of the worst marine disasters in living memory' requires rapid investigation by federal and state governments to identify any at-risk species and fund emergency interventions if necessary. In a report by the Biodiversity Council, an independent expert group founded by 11 universities, the scientists called on governments to commit to seven actions to respond to the 'foreseeable and even predicted' event and to prepare for 'an increasingly dangerous and unstable future'. As expected, the federal Senate on Wednesday nightestablished an inquiry into the disaster that has killed thousands of marine animals off SA. The Coalition senator Anne Ruston earlier accused the federal and SA governments of being too slow to act on the 'significant environmental issue', 'allowing it to massively escalate into a serious ecological disaster'. While she welcomed this week's assistance packages – with federal and state governments each announcing $14m – she said it seemed 'manifestly inadequate to deal with the impact on the affected communities'. 'It fails to recognise the magnitude of the response needed to both address the problem and deal with the clean-up,' the senator for SA said. 'At a national level this marine heatwave is likely to have an equivalent impact on wildlife as the black summer bushfires, once we consider not just this harmful algal bloom, but also the extensive coral bleaching and mortality on both east and west coasts,' said Prof Gretta Pecl, a Biodiversity Council member from the University of Tasmania's Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies. She noted that governments had previously 'mobilised significant funds' for natural disasters, 'as we saw with the $2bn National Bushfire Recovery Fund, which included over $200m for wildlife recovery measures'. Sign up: AU Breaking News email The federal MP for the SA seat of Mayo, Rebekha Sharkie, said the federal government needed to commit more. 'With respect, if this was happening at Bondi beach, for example, I'm sure we'd be seeing a much larger slice of commonwealth funding,' she said, echoing recent comments from the Greens senator for SA Sarah Hanson-Young. 'Although there's nothing we can do to stop the current bloom, we need additional investment for monitoring and research..' Actions called for by the Biodiversity Council include an immediate investment of at least $10m to start research into the impact of the algal bloom, establishment of a long-term monitoring program of southern reefs – modelled on the $40m 10-year Great Barrier Reef monitoring program – and rapid work to investigate at-risk species, including giant cuttlefish, which have a mass winter breeding event off Whyalla. The council said the government assistance package was a 'welcome start' but was likely insufficient to support and compensate affected communities and businesses and address 'immediate and longer term biodiversity needs'. Pecl said the impact of the event would 'massively exceed the actual boundaries of the physical bloom itself', with cascading consequences for other Australian regions because of the connectivity of oceans and their food webs. 'This harmful algal bloom is just one of the major consequences of the marine heatwave ringing Australia, which has also caused extensive coral bleaching on both east and west coasts with high rates of coral mortality,' she said. The report said the crisis was a 'human-mediated disaster' enabled by the extended marine heatwave and likely fed by a large pulse of nutrient-rich flood water and coastal upwelling. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion Scientists said the event had likely been exacerbated by the 'widespread loss of marine ecosystems that once provided natural water filtering and resilience against natural as well as human threats'. They called on governments to accelerate Australia's decarbonisation efforts, saying minimising ocean warming was 'the most important step in preventing harmful algal blooms' along all Australian coastlines. The report proposed further actions including more work to identify and reduce sources of nutrient and dissolved carbon pollution and restoration and protection of marine ecosystems. A federal government spokesperson said the health and resilience of Australia's oceans were a priority and the government was 'deeply concerned by the widespread marine species mortalities caused by this extreme event'. 'The Albanese Government will continue to work constructively with the South Australian Government when it comes to the devastating SA algal bloom,' they said. 'That's why we have contributed half of the $28m funding package with the South Australian government to support science and research to boost resilience and planning, industry support and clean up efforts.' The Biodiversity Council director, James Trezise, said: 'Alongside rapidly reducing emissions, Australia needs to be better prepared for environmental disasters such as this. 'We should all accept that this is likely to just be the tip of the iceberg for what our future looks like with unmitigated climate change and rapid biodiversity loss,' he said. The Senate inquiry is expected to hand down its report in late October.
News.com.au
27-06-2025
- Politics
- News.com.au
Sussan Ley says she is an ‘absolute zealot' for more women in Liberal Party but has not committed to introducing quotas
Liberal leader Sussan Ley says she is an 'absolute zealot' for increasing female representation in the party but has refused to endorse gender quotas after two senior Liberal women hinted the party could reconsider the measure. Ms Ley was asked on Friday morning whether the party was facing extinction over internal party division on efforts to increase the number of women in the parliamentary party. 'It's a stark reality that when I walk into the parliament on the first day, I'll be sitting there as the leader opposite the Prime Minister, there will be five Liberal women sitting behind me, and that's a real call to action. So there's not division across our party,' Ms Ley said. 'We must get more women in our ranks, preselected in winnable seats in the lead-up to the next election.' Ms Ley said she was 'agnostic' about how the party got more women into its ranks but 'an absolute zealot that we make it happen'. It comes after South Australian senator Anne Ruston opened the door to using gender quotas, saying the party can 'no longer rule out the temporary use of quotas as an option'. Ms Ruston had previously rejected gender quotas in 2021 but said given that the party had not met its targets, other measures had to be considered. 'We must encourage more women to join the Liberal Party, and we must get Liberal women into the parliament,' Ms Ruston said. Coalition women spokeswoman Melissa McIntosh also hinted that the party should consider quotas. 'We shouldn't be closing the door to any possible work to be done within the party, whether they are quotas or targets … but the work should be done and then we can have an evidence-based position on whether we should be adopting quotas.' Ms Ley was grilled on Thursday morning about whether senior male figures in the party – including Tony Abbott and Angus Taylor – who were opposed to quotas were part of the problem. 'So some of our strongest advocates are the men in the party, and I know that we as a parliamentary team want to get this right, and I've seen some great approaches by the men in the party in mentoring women to come into our party,' Ms Ley said. Opposition defence spokesman Angus Taylor was asked on Friday morning for his position on quotas and gave a hard no. 'I have never been a supporter of quotas,' Mr Taylor said. 'Because I don't believe in subverting democratic processes. The Labor Party does, we traditionally haven't in the Liberal Party. I think there's better ways of achieving this. I have found that in my own professional career.'
