Macquarie University Lifespan Research Centre Mental Health Month Public Lecture

Join us for our Mental Health Month Public Lecture on Monday 23 October where we will be discussing emotional health across the lifespan (kids, adults, older adults).

Hear from Dr Lauren McLellan who will discuss Developing a National Voluntary Mental Health and Wellbeing Check-in for Australian School Students, Prof Melissa Norberg who will present on CBT for Hoarding Disorder and A/Prof Carly Johnco will present findings from a long-term (10 year) follow-up study of older adults previously treated with CBT.

We will also be screening a short documentary “A Second Chance at Life” that is part of a recent collaboration between Prof Viviana Wuthrich and Dr Iqbal Barkat from the Department of Media, Communications, Creative Arts, Literature and Language (MCCALL). “A Second Chance at life” is a documentary about Helen, an older widow, who was struggling with depression and anxiety. Through the documentary she describes what her life was like before seeking treatment, and then how her life was revolutionised after receiving Macquarie University’s Ageing Wisely cognitive behavioural therapy program as part of a current National Health & Medical Research Centre-funded clinical trial. Helen’s experience has been very cleverly documented by Dr Iqbal Barkat’s students who undertook the development of this documentary as part of an internship that he organises for his Screen Practice and Production students.

More about the lecture topics below: 

Developing a National Voluntary Mental Health and Wellbeing Check-in for Australian School Students
Young people commonly experience mental health concerns - 1 in 7 have a mental health diagnosis. But 89% don’t get the help they need. One way to improve these statistics is to help identify mental health concerns early. With funding from the BUPA Foundation Macquarie University conducted research to develop and evaluate a mental health check in tool for school students in Australia. We have now partnered with the Commonwealth Department of Education to further develop and roll out a free, online, voluntary mental health check tool for all school students across Australia. The tool will help schools quickly identify students who are struggling with mental health and wellbeing and assist them to recommend appropriate pathways to care. This public lecture will provide an overview of the research we have conducted in developing the mental health check tool, as well as current plans to make the tool available in 2024
via this Commonwealth partnership.

CBT for Hoarding Disorder
Prof Melissa Norberg will discuss quickly what is and is not hoarding disorder, before moving onto describing CBT for hoarding disorder. She will leave attendees with a few rules and tips that they can use to help make decisions about acquiring and saving.

Findings from a long-term (10 year) follow-up study of older adults previously treated with CBT
Anxiety and depression are the most common mental health problems among older adults. Left untreated, they are associated with poorer quality of life, increased loneliness, disability, healthcare use, risk of dementia and suicide. Although cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) is effective for treating these conditions in the short term, data are more limited on the long-term outcomes. Associate Professor Carly Johnco will present findings from a long-term (10 year) follow-up study of older adults previously treated with CBT or an active control treatment (Discussion Group). 

For any questions, please contact lifespan@mq.edu.au.