Mental health of farmers in Southern Queensland: issues and support

Mental health of farmers in Southern Queensland: issues and support

Objective: To inform the development of an initiative
designed to support the mental well-being of farmers in
Queensland.
Design: Interactive focus groups.
Setting: Rural and remote Queensland.
Participants: Health professionals, farmers and representatives of organisations and agencies working with
farmers.
Main outcome measures: Determination of factors
contributing to the declining mental health of rural
landholders. Content material for inclusion into mental
health first aid programs held for field officers.
Results: Key areas identified to contribute to the decline
in mental health of farmers were: increasing isolation
in its varying forms, the ongoing drought, increased
government regulations and widening of the schism
between urban and rural Australians. The issues that
affect farmers are recognised to have a ‘knock-on’ effect
on the people who interact with them. In particular,
rural support organisations are concerned for the wellbeing
of their staff, prompting some to begin to put
protocols in place to address their staff need for mental
health support. Additional mental health training of
field officers that involves awareness, recognition,
communication skills, understanding and empathy was
recognised by participants to be beneficial.
Conclusion: Training of field officers was considered to
be of benefit to the support of farmers. An understanding
of the various and diverse issues that rural landholders
face should be a fundamental component of that
training.

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