An Orygen study that highlights the efficacy of an Australian-developed program to improve the mental health care of men has been published in one of the world’s most prestigious mental health journals, American Psychologist.
An Orygen randomised-controlled trial initiated in 2022 found that Movember program, Men in Mind, drastically enhanced practitioners' confidence and competence in engaging and responding to male clients.
Men in Mind is a world-first, online professional training program designed to empower mental health practitioners to better reach, respond and retain their male clients. It was developed in the context that men continue to account for three in four suicides in Australia while research shows that 45 per cent of men withdraw from care before receiving adequate support.
In the trial, more than four in five practitioners (81 per cent) reported confidence to intervene with suicidal men after completing the Men in Mind training. This is a substantial increase, as less than half of participants reported confidence in this area prior to the training.
Further to this, almost identical improvements were also reported for practitioners engaging with men struggling with their emotions, motivation and anger.
Publication in the flagship peer-reviewed journal of the American Psychological Association sees the work of Orygen Senior Research Fellow Dr Zac Seidler and his team recognised and distributed on the world stage.
“I’m incredibly proud of the work we’ve accomplished with this study. We know approximately 45 per cent of men withdraw from care before receiving adequate support – Men in Mind has sought to better equip practitioners and the system they work in, to give them the best possible shot to engage men in care, and hopefully prevent suicides,” Dr Seidler said.
“Men typically drop out of care due to a lack of connection with their practitioner, and therapists often struggle to adapt their practice for men. Now, we have strong evidence of an effective solution in real-world clinical practice.
“To be published in a platform like American Psychologist provides an opportunity to reach a broader audience of professionals who can directly improve health outcomes for men in mental health settings.”
The trial involved 587 practitioners and provided strong evidence that Men in Mind is efficacious in improving mental health practitioners’ self-reported clinical competencies related to engaging and responding to male clients in psychotherapy.
Men in Mind offers a progressive approach to ensuring help-seeking men are met with practitioners who are competent and confident in providing gender-responsive treatment, purposefully adapted according to interactions between masculine gender socialisation, mental illness, and suicide risk.
"By equipping mental health practitioners with the tools and knowledge they need to engage and respond effectively to men's unique needs, we are ensuring that more men receive the support they need, when they need it,” Dr Seidler said.
“Ultimately, that’s what Men in Mind is all about.”
Read the full study in American Psychologist here.
Learn more about Men in Mind via the Movember website here.