Mind Over Market: Highlights from Rise Thrive and more

IMPORTANT TOPICS IN SPOTLIGHT

Mental health is becoming an increasingly mainstream concern in Australia as the issue receives growing attention from governments, industry and business.

The statistics are eye-opening - from more than 40% of Australians having experienced a mental health disorder, to the struggles faced by 1.1 million young adults, or the stark reality that those in greatest need are disproportionately underserved.

But the harsh reality of the statistics is a helpful step forward, launching important conversations which will deliver solutions. This is something we applaud at Rise, as holding open and frank discussions has always been a part of our mantra.

This month we bring you video content from some of our recent speakers, who started conversations at this year's RiSE Thrive conference around topics such as stress and anxiety, property management and being part of your local community.

We encourage you to watch, to think, and to act. We can all be a part of the solutions.

NEWS

Study reveals extent of mental health issues
More than 40% of Australians aged 16 to 85 years have experienced a mental health disorder in their lifetime according to new Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data released this month.

Almost 16,000 Australians took part in the National Study of Mental Health and Wellbeing, which has delivered a comprehensive view of mental health in the community across 2020 to 2022.

The results also showed that one in five Australians (21.5%) had experienced a mental health disorder in the previous 12 months.

ABS head of health statistics Linda Fardell said anxiety was the most common group of disorders recorded.

"More than one in six Australians (17.2%) had an anxiety disorder such as social phobia or post-traumatic stress disorder in the previous 12 months," she said.

"An affective disorder, such as depression, was reported by 7.5% of people, while 3.3% had a substance use disorder.”

The data also showed that around 1.1 million or 38.8% of young adults aged 16 to 24 years had experienced a mental health disorder in the previous 12 months.

“Almost half of young females (45.5%) and one third of young males (32.4%) had a mental disorder in this period, with anxiety disorders being the most common,” Ms Fardell said.

“Nearly three in five people (58.7%) who identified as gay, lesbian, or bisexual, or who used a different term to describe their sexual orientation, had a mental disorder in the previous 12 months. One in five people (19.9%) who identified as heterosexual had a mental disorder in the same period.”

The study also revealed insights into how people managed their mental health.

Nearly a quarter of all 16 to 34 year olds (22.9%) had at least one health professional consultation for their mental health in the past 12 months while 8.2% in this age group also accessed other services including treatment programs, crisis support, counselling, support groups and chat rooms.

“Almost half of all people who had a mental disorder in the previous 12 months (45.1%) saw a health professional and one in seven (14.3%) accessed other services.”

More information is available for free download from the ABS website.

Overwhelmed by your workload?
Stark disparities in access to mental health care services across Australia have been uncovered in new data modelling research from Mental Health Australia and the National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling (NATSEM) at the University of Canberra. The Mapping Mental Health Care research project revealed many communities with higher mental health care needs were disproportionately underserved - spotlighting the urgent need for systemic mental health reforms. The research highlighted that the demographics of major concern included people living regionally and remotely, younger people, low-income earners, the unemployed, and single-parent households.

Open conversations to improve industry
In the ever-evolving real estate industry landscape, true leadership extends beyond profits and transactions. In 2024, RiSE will again challenge the status quo with a transformative two-day Leadership Retreat designed for open conversations and challenging content. Thanks to the generous support of Macquarie, this exclusive event will again take place at their global headquarters, 50 Martin Place, Sydney, on April 18 and 19, 2024 (with welcome drinks on Wednesday night).