PERSONS OF ALL AGES

There were 153,451 deaths registered in Australia in 2011-12 (between 10 August 2011 and 27 September 2012 inclusive). Persons who accessed mental health-related treatments accounted for 49.4% of all deaths in this period (75,858 deaths).

Of the 75,858 deaths of persons who accessed mental health-related treatments, almost all had accessed PBS subsidised mental health-related prescription medications in 2011 (73,830 or 97.3%), while considerably fewer had accessed MBS subsidised mental health-related services (9,152 or 12.1%). Almost one in ten (7,124 or 9.4%) had accessed both mental health-related services and medications.



AGE AND SEX

As would be expected, numbers of deaths of persons who accessed mental health-related treatments in 2011 increased with age, with deaths of persons aged 75 years and over accounting for around two-thirds (65.2%) of all deaths of persons who accessed mental health-related treatments in 2011 (similar to the proportion of deaths of persons aged 75 years and over amongst the total Australian population, of 64.9%).

Overall there were more deaths of females who accessed mental health-related treatments than males (40,401 compared with 35,457 respectively), reflecting, at least in part, the greater number of females who accessed mental health-related treatments in 2011 than males. The large difference between numbers of deaths of males and females aged 85 years and over who accessed mental health-related treatments can be attributed to higher life expectancy of females, with more deaths of males occurring at younger ages than females, similar to the pattern of age at death amongst the total Australian population.



STATE/TERRITORY AND REGIONAL DIFFERENCES

Across states and territories, the number of deaths of persons who accessed mental health-related treatments reflected the distribution of the population across Australia, with the greatest number of deaths registered in New South Wales and the fewest in the Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory.

Similarly, across Remoteness Areas, Major Cities accounted for the majority of deaths of persons who accessed mental health-related treatments (47,686 deaths or 62.9% of deaths amongst this population). Inner Regional areas of Australia accounted for one-quarter (18,942 deaths or 25.0%) of all deaths of persons who accessed mental health-related treatments in 2011-12 while Outer Regional areas accounted for 10.8% of all deaths in this population (8,206 deaths). Standardised death rates for persons who accessed mental health-related treatments for Remoteness Areas are presented in Mortality of persons who accessed MBS and/or PBS subsidised mental health-related treatments in 2011.



SOCIO-ECONOMIC DISADVANTAGE

The Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage measures socio-economic disadvantage within areas of Australia by combining a range of indicators including household income, family composition, labour force participation and education.

Of the 75,858 deaths of persons who accessed mental health-related treatments in 2011, around one-third (24,504 deaths or 32.3%) were deaths of persons living in most disadvantaged areas of Australia (Quintile 1 below), while around one in ten (8,376 deaths or 11.0%) were deaths of persons in least disadvantaged areas (Quintile 5). This pattern is consistent with that of deaths amongst the total Australian population, and reflects in part the higher death rates amongst people in areas of greater socio-economic disadvantage than amongst people in areas of less socio-economic disadvantage. Standardised death rates for persons who accessed mental health-related treatments by levels of socio-economic disadvantage are presented in Mortality of persons who accessed MBS and/or PBS subsidised mental health-related treatments in 2011.



LABOUR FORCE PARTICIPATION

In 2011 there were 2.1 million persons aged 15-64 years (working age population) who accessed mental health-related treatments, with 13,177 deaths amongst this population. Of these deaths, almost three quarters (72.4%) were of persons not in the labour force. For the total Australian population of the same age, a little over half (56.8%) of all deaths were of persons not in the labour force. This difference reflects higher non-participation in the labour force amongst persons who accessed mental health-related treatments in general (38.5%), compared with all persons aged 15-64 years (23.0%), noting that persons who accessed mental health-related treatments and were not in the labour force may not be so due a variety of reasons not necessarily related to their mental health.