Ulverstone Tasmania trials free mental health support program

Last Friday (4th March) we were excited to officially launch our first ever community based HealthCi program in the Ulverstone region in North West Tasmania.

Supported by Primary Health Tasmania (Tasmania PHN) through the Australian Government’s primary health networks program, the program will be running throughout the year as a pilot low intensity mental health service, aimed testing new ways of engaging people with, or at risk of, mild mental health concerns.

Adults living in the Ulverstone area now have access to our HealthCi mobile app, providing them with free digital health and wellbeing support and coaching.  The holistic program aims to engage individuals and provide them with tools that they need to make sustainable improvements to their overall health and wellbeing, while also proactively addressing the risks of mild mental ill-health.

Alastair Lynch and the Healthy Business team officially launched the program at a community event on Friday night at the Ulverstone Football Club.

Federal Member for Braddon Gavin Pearce said he is always fighting hard to improve access to mental health services in the Ulverstone region and hoped HealthCi would fill a gap in health and wellbeing education for locals.

Mr Pearce said: 

“If the pandemic has highlighted one thing, it’s that everyone needs to be mindful of their mental health. The attention we give it should be no different to our physical health,”

“HealthCi will be a powerful complement to the existing mental health services working in the Ulverstone area, offering locals an accessible and flexible tool for checking in with their mental health and wellbeing.

“The pandemic experience has shown us the value of connecting digitally, and I’m hopeful that this pilot will give us further insight into how digital health solutions can benefit rural communities.”

‍Healthy Business chief executive Steve McCullagh said HealthCi is centred on early intervention and empowering participants to make — and sustain — lifestyle choices and behaviours that facilitate good mental health and overall wellbeing.

Mr McCullagh said:

“HealthCi isn’t about focusing on a single part of someone’s life, such as their mental health, and working on it in isolation — it’s about supporting them holistically, so they can create positive changes that will stand the test of time,”

Primary Health Tasmania’s Grant Akesson said the outcomes of the pilot, which runs until December 2022, would help inform future support options for people with and at risk of mild mental illness.

“We know that in Tasmania, rates of self-reported psychological distress and diagnoses of depression and anxiety have increased over time,” Mr Akesson said.

“We also know there is strong demand for mental health services in Tasmania, and across Australia, and that the COVID-19 pandemic has driven some of this demand.

“That’s why it’s so important to test and evaluate new ways of providing support to people, especially those who live outside major cities, so we can get people the help they need at the earliest possible juncture.”

Healthy Business are excited to be able to partner with Primary Health Tasmania to test and deliver this vital service to the Ulverstone community.

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Find out more about the program here

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