S.TRUEMAN PhD THESIS 2016

24

0 2,000 4,000 6,000 8,000 10,000 12,000 14,000 16,000 18,000 20,000

Number of GPs by Remoteness

Figure 1.6. Number of general practitioners by remoteness classification, 2012. Source: AIHW, 2012.

With reference to Table 1.7, in 2012, 2.3% of GPs in Australia worked in remote and very remote Australia, compared to 71.2% working in major cities. Despite their relative and actual low numbers in remote and very remote areas, GPs have a pivotal role in the detection and treatment of mental health problems in remote communities. However, some national studies including data on remote GPs have revealed low detection rates of mental illness in these areas (Aoun, Underwood & Rouse, 1997; Brody, Khaliq & Thompson, 1997; Henderson, Andrews & Hall, 2000; Hickie, Davenport, Naismith & Scott, 2001). A number of factors have been suggested as contributors to this, including reluctance among remote patients to report their mental health problems due to stigma and lack of anonymity in small communities (Wrigley, Jackson, Judd & Komiti, 2004), the stoic nature of remote populations (Judd et al., 2006), time pressures on GP appointments, and lack of mental health training and appropriate diagnostic tools suited to GP practice (Handley et al., 2014; Hickie et al., 2001; Findlay & Sheehan, 2004).