He is now responsible for driving and co-ordinating the Federal Government s initiatives in mental health, including Australia s National Mental Health and Youth Suicide Prevention strategies. The National Mental Health Strategy is big picture work setting Australia s priorities and drawing the states and territories into an agreed national agenda, he explained. The Youth Suicide Prevention Strategy is a major area of effort we have 36 programs in place for children, schools, doctors, government departments and private-sector areas. And, while Harvey has been shaking the tree of Queensland and Australian mental health policy and service delivery, he has continued seeing patients and lecturing students. My contract with the Commonwealth Government includes the right to clinical practice and I maintain contact with patients because this is the grass-roots of everything I am trying to achieve keeping in touch with the real need, he said.
Teaching is a way of giving something back to the system.
The MPH taught me the language of healty policy and administration and my medical experience grounds me in the world of clinical care. Very few people are fortunate enough to have qualifications to be able to work in both areas. The masters has allowed that to happen for me. Dr Harvey Whiteford was nominated by MPH lecturer Dr Donald E Stewart.