In this year’s budget, the federal government announced one of the biggest changes to the mental health system in nearly two decades: a digital early intervention service to relieve Australians’ early psychological distress before it builds into mental illness.

Starting in 2026, and based on the UK’s Talking Therapies model, the service is expected to offer a combination of apps, websites and free telehealth therapy sessions that deliver a type of cognitive behavioural therapy called “low-intensity psychological interventions”.

The idea is that if we detect psychological distress early, we can prevent some people developing mental illness, and allow mental health experts more time to spend with complex patients.

It sounds good in theory, but it doesn’t always work in practice.