Budget 2005: National depression awareness initiative gets funding
Jim Anderton today announced a new $6.53 million (GST exclusive) National Depression Initiative aimed at changing and
saving lives.
The Progressive Party secured the new funding over the next four financial years in the coalition government's sixth
budget round, Budget 2005, for investment in a multi-pronged campaign about depression.
Mr Anderton said that while one in five New Zealanders may experience depression in their lifetime, few recognise the
signs or seek help early enough to get effective treatment and avoid the negative impacts of depression on their lives
and the lives of their families.
"Until now, too many of us have tended to stick our heads in the sand and pretend we could just ride out depression. Too
many New Zealanders have been ashamed to talk about it, as if it is a character weakness. But anyone, including John
Kirwan, can suffer from depression, and we need to encourage people to seek help earlier,” Mr Anderton said.
The National Depression Initiative, currently in its planning stages with the Ministry of Health, is likely to include
the use of mass media, health workforce development and training, community based programmes to help people with mild to
moderate depression, as well as their families.
The project will include a phone survey about depression, which will be used to monitor changes in public knowledge,
attitudes and behaviours around depression. This announcement follows Mr Anderton’s release of the draft New Zealand
Suicide Prevention Strategy last week.
Research shows that mood disorders, which include depression, are a key risk factor for suicide. Based on overseas
evidence and a review of suicide prevention literature, depression awareness and associated access to help services has
been recommended as a significant action point in the new all-ages approach to suicide prevention. The World Health
Organization predicts depression will become the second major cause of disease by 2020. Yet in many cases depression is
easily treatable, without it developing into a severe illness that in turn can lead to thoughts of suicide.
We need to reduce New Zealand’s suicide rate, and addressing depression is one way to do that. The Ministry of Health
expects to complete the planning for the National Depression Initiative in late 2005.
Background: Depression Awareness Initiative
In Budget 2004 funding was secured for the scoping of a National Depression Initiative (NDI) and the final report is due
in September 2005.
It will make recommendations for a multi-pronged initiative that are likely to include components such as a national
multimedia campaign to raise awareness about depression similar to Like Minds and Australia’s Beyond Blue, and health
workforce development and training.
The further funding secured for this and in following years is required to ensure that the multi-pronged initiative can
be fully developed as a comprehensive sustainable programme.
Most people with depression can be treated in general practice, either by a General Practitioner alone, or, for more
serious depression, in partnership with specialist mental health service providers.
A number of studies have shown benefit from treatment in a primary care setting, including a reduction in suicides. New
Zealand research has shown that the major reasons for not seeking treatment relate to a lack of recognition by the
individual of possible mental health problems and of the need for treatment. Another study found that common reasons for
failing to seek help were doubts about the need for care or beliefs that they should be strong enough to manage without
professional care.
These findings suggest that the major barriers to people seeking care arise from perceptions that their symptoms are not
severe enough to warrant treatment. In turn this implies that educative campaigns that advise and inform people and
their families about mental health problems, how to access health services, remove the stigma from seeking help and
educate about the benefits and efficacy of early treatment for depression would be expected to produce benefits.
It is unusual for depression to be the sole problem presenting. It is usually co morbid with other problems, most
commonly anxiety. World Health Organization (WHO) analysis shows that unipolar depressive disorders place an enormous
burden on society and are ranked as the fourth leading contributor to the social and economic burden of disease.
And the outlook for the future has been assessed by the WHO. By the year 2020, if current trends for demographic and
epidemiological transition continue, the burden of depression worldwide will be second only to ischaemic heart disease
for disability adjusted life years (DALYs) lost in both sexes. In economically developed regions, depression will by
that time be the highest-ranking cause of the burden of disease. One United Kingdom estimate, for example, puts the cost
at approx 0.6% of Gross Domestic Product or, in New Zealand terms, that would be equivalent to around NZ$750 million in
2005 terms.