In Australia, mental illness is estimated to have a prevalence rate of 20%, with similar prevalence in remote and rural areas as in metropolitan areas.¹

On almost any measure, however, people living in remote and rural areas experience inequity in both access to mental health services and outcomes.

The most recent ABS report shows that from 2014 to 2018, the suicide rate outside capital cities consistently remained 1.5 times higher than that in greater metropolitan areas, yet Medicare-subsidised mental health services are accessed at a rate three times less than in major cities.^2,3

GPs are often the first point of contact for mental health presentations in rural and remote areas, so there is a pressing need for innovations that allow healthcare providers to more easily deliver treatment to their patients, while also lessening the burden on patients when accessing treatment.