People with intellectual disability in Australia experience poor mental health, are underrepresented in mental health policy, and encounter major barriers in accessing mental health services and treatments. This study interrogated the current representation of people with intellectual disability and recommended strategies to enhance the inclusion of intellectual disability in mental health policy. A policy analysis framework was developed that included context, stakeholders, process, and content. Nine pieces of Australian mental health legislation and 37 mental health policy documents were analyzed using the framework. Fifteen of the 37 documents included mention of intellectual disability with limited attention to the specific mental health needs of people with intellectual disability and mental illness. Only two documents identified specific strategies or measurable actions and targets to improve the access of people with intellectual disability and mental illness to mental health services. The documents’ strengths that may be applied to develop inclusive intellectual disability mental health policy included being values‐based, recognizing diversity, taking a life‐course approach, focusing on workforce development, and ensuring checks and balances. An inclusive approach to the development and implementation of intellectual disability mental health policy will best meet the mental health needs of individuals with intellectual disability. An inclusive policy approach will be based on a sound evidence‐base and include a comprehensive understanding of the context in which the policy is developed; consultation with key stakeholders including people with intellectual disability and mental illness, their family and carers, and those who work with them; cross‐sector collaboration and workforce training. An inclusive approach to the development and implementation of intellectual disability mental health policy using an integrated knowledge translation approach will address the current lack of attention to the important area of how to best meet the mental health needs of individuals with intellectual disability.
There is known to be considerable overlap among the victims and perpetrators of crime. However, the extent of this overlap early in life among children and young adolescents is not clear. We examined the sociodemographic profiles of young people who had early contact with police regarding a criminal incident as a person of interest, victim and/or witness, as well as the patterns of multiple police contact types from birth to 13 years of age. Data were drawn from a longitudinal, population-based sample of 91,631 young people from New South Wales, Australia. Among the 10.6% (n = 9677) of young people who had contact with police, 14.4% (n = 1393) had contact as a person of interest and as a victim and/or witness on two or more separate occasions. The most common first contact type was as a victim/witness, but those children with a first contact as a person of interest were most likely to have at least one further contact. Young people with both types of police contact were younger at first police contact, were more likely to reside in a socioeconomically disadvantaged area, and to be recorded as having an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander background. Our findings demonstrate that, by 13 years of age, 1 in 10 young people had been in early contact with police and that a minority have contact with the police as both a person of interest and a victim/witness. These young people may represent a particularly disadvantaged group in the community who are likely to be at risk of future adversity, including repeated contact with the criminal justice system.
Background: Parental offending and mental illness are associated with an increased risk of criminal behaviour in offspring during adolescence and adulthood, but the impact of such problems on younger children, including children's experiences of victimisation, is less well known. Aim: To investigate the associations between parental offending and mental illness recorded prior to their offspring's age of 5 years and their offspring's contact with police as a 'person of interest', 'victim' or 'witness' between ages 5 and 13 years. Methods: Our sample consisted of 72,771 children and their parents drawn from the New South Wales Child Development
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