Western Australia, Northern Territory and South Australia have the highest prevalence of youth self-harm, according to a new study.
The Australian Youth Self-Harm Atlas, led by QIMR Berghofer researcher Emily Hielscher, examined the prevalence of youth self-harm and suicidality across Australia and how it varied in different areas.
The study also found statistically significant clusters of higher estimated prevalence of youth self-harm in all states and territories, including regional areas of North and central Queensland, Western Australia, and the Northern Territory.
Dr Hielscher said they also found clusters in metropolitan areas of eastern Melbourne, outer south-eastern Adelaide, and outer Western Sydney.
She said the clusters of heightened prevalence were associated with factors like higher socio-economic disadvantage and insecure housing.
"The prevalence of youth self-harm and suicidality was generally higher in regional and remote areas, with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities disproportionately affected," Dr Hielscher said.
Climate change, disasters contributing reasons, study finds
Dr Hielscher said climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, and natural disasters had a "huge impact on the young people in the study".
"In our focus groups, specific to climate change and that sense of hopelessness surrounding it, some found it challenging in terms of their willingness to live, and desire to keep going, and summing it up like: what's the point?" she said.
Dr Hielscher said people in more regional and remote areas were more greatly affected because they found it harder to access activities and events "to give them more hope", and access to services.
Other risk factors identified in the study included mental illness, having Australian-born parents, parents that are unemployed and insecure housing, financial barriers, transport limitations, and community stigma in regional areas.
Dr Hielscher said one finding of interest was an association of reduced odds of youth self-harm in areas of high proportions of overseas-born parents.
She said some existing theories explaining that could be either under-reporting in those communities, or how these communities might give young people a bigger range of skills to help them cope.
"We have to have more dedicated studies on this with culturally diverse populations in Australia, to see whether there really are some lessons that we can learn about potential protective elements of growing up in these types of communities," she said.
Recommendations for highly localised solutions
The study used data from the 2013–2014 Young Minds Matter Survey, 2016 Census, along with 14 focus groups over the past two years to estimate the prevalence of youth self harm, making a raft of recommendations.
Dr Hielscher said while there was already a national mental health strategy for all ages, the study showed there needed to be a dedicated youth suicide prevention plan with highly localised approaches.
"Ideally we recommend a strategy that mirrors what they've done, which is to have a national overarching strategy that is tailored, localised, and delivered through primary health networks that are very attuned to the needs of young people and how those needs vary in different regions," she said.
"Youth have different specific needs, and they vary between different regions, so I think that needs to be really at the forefront of future policy planning."
Dr Hielscher said the general assumption that addressing mental health concerns would reduce self-harm and suicide was not supported by this study and others.
Instead, a more holistic approach addressing both mental health concerns and socio-economic disadvantage and barriers in different communities was needed, she said.
"Having young people with lived experience at the heart of these solutions is really a key approach moving forward," Dr Hielscher said.
Mental health in your inbox
Get a selection of the best mental health content from across the ABC by subscribing to our monthly newsletter
