S.TRUEMAN PhD THESIS 2016

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Hickie, 2012). In 2006, the Australian Government introduced the ‘Better Access to Mental Healthcare’ (Better Access) initiative, consisting of new Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) items aiming to improve access to psychiatrists, psychologists and GPs. Evaluation of the program highlighted the success of Better Access in increasing psychological service use and doubling patient numbers in its first year (Harris, Pirkis & Burgess, 2011; Pirkis, Harris, Hall & Ftanou, 2010). Simultaneously, there were concerns as to whether Better Access was having the same effect in remote communities as it was in metropolitan areas (Bassilios et al., 2010; Byles, Dolja-Gore & Loxton, 2011; Harris, 2012; Harrison et al., 2012). The foundation of these concerns was recently confirmed by Meadows, Enticott, Inder, Russell and Gurr (2015), who found that despite Better Access, funding for all mental healthcare-related MBS items declined with remoteness (see Table 2.16). The funding initiative neglected remote areas. Another initiative worthy of mention is the Mental Health Nurse Incentive Programme (MHNIP), which provides a non-MBS incentive payment to community-based general practices, private psychiatrist services, Divisions of General Practice, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Primary Healthcare Services who engage mental health nurses to provide clinical care for people with severe mental disorders. This programme is not discussed further in this study, as its continued existence is contingent on a current review and the establishment of future funding beyond June 2016 (Department of Health, 2015).