Bridging the Gap: How Consultmed Is transforming mental health services in Australia.

The mental health workforce crisis in Australia, as detailed in the Australian Doctor by Dr. Simon Stafrace, underscores a significant challenge in providing adequate mental health care. The difficulty faced by a patient with bipolar disorder in accessing timely psychiatric care exemplifies the broader issues within the healthcare system. This crisis has prompted a collective response from the psychiatric community, with over 500 psychiatrists voicing their concerns through an open letter to Mark Butler, the federal Minister for Health and Aged Care.

The heart of the issue lies in the significant waiting times for psychiatric appointments, often stretching to several months, and a “missing middle”; of patients with complex needs that fall between GP management and hospital care. This scenario places a strain not only on patients and their families but also on emergency departments that are the last resort for many.

At Consultmed, we’re aware of these challenges and are dedicated to offering innovative solutions through our platforms and partnerships with mental health providers such as Psych2U and Primary Health Networks (PHNs) rolling out Head to Health programs.

For patients and primary care providers, our platform streamlines the process of referring directly to Australian registered psychiatrists and psychologists. Currently, with 35 psychologists and 21 psychiatrists on their team, Psych2U offers immediate access without any waitlists for consulting a psychiatrist or psychologist. You can access this service at the following link:

In our partnerships with PHNs we’re facilitating Head to Health referrals, creating an ecosystem that makes it easy for individuals to find and refer to their local services. We’ve created a ‘hub and spoke’ referral system between North Coast PHN, Hunter Primary Care and other mental health providers, allowing referrals to be made and actioned easily both by GPs and patients/carers self-referring to these services. See the Head to Health referral portal created by Healthy North Coast: