Vulnerable Australians needing urgent mental health intervention will now be able to text Lifeline at any time of the day in a major change to the service.
At the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, the service opened a text line – allowing vulnerable Australians who didn’t feel comfortable picking up the phone to text a qualified crisis supporter between 6pm and midnight.
After almost two years of the limited pilot service, the federal government has on Monday announced a $1.5m boost that will transform the program to 24/7 after it responded to 51,265 text conversations in 2021.
It’s hoped the expanded text service will mean more young people, as well as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and those experiencing family and domestic violence, find comfort in the program.
Lifeline is continuing to record high lexjmtzywvels of calls and texts, with a record 3700 calls made in one day alone in January.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison last week doubled down on his desire to make his government’s pandemic investments in mental health and suicide prevention a “lasting legacy”.
“While every death by suicide is a tragedy, every life saved is a great blessing,” Mr Morrison said last week.
“Official figures show that while demands for mental health services surged off the charts during the pandemic, remarkably, death by suicide rates across the country actually fell.
“And it remained at those lower levels – that’s extraordinary.”
Health Minister Greg Hunt said it was reassuring that people were reaching out for help when they needed to.
“The expansion of the text service is backed by data showing that it is the preferred channel for high-risk members of the community, including young people,” Mr Hunt said.
Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention David Coleman said the expansion of the program would mean no Australian had to experience “their darkest moment alone”.
“(Lifeline) literally saves lives,” Mr Coleman said.
“The 24/7 Lifeline crisis support text service makes Lifeline’s support available to groups who might otherwise not reach out for help, particularly young people who are often more comfortable using text services.”
Those wanting to access the service can send a confidential text message to 0477 13 11 14.
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