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    Beyondblue commits
    Written by Rachel Cook   
    Wednesday, 01 July 2009 12:01
    National anti-depression organisation beyondblue has committed to improving its services for gay, lesbian and bisexual Australians.

    Speaking with MCV after an article in The Sunday Age highlighted the organisation has knocked back repeated funding requests to support depressed young people struggling with their sexuality, beyondblue chief executive Leonie Young said gay and lesbian issues were now top of the agenda.

    “It’s a priority for us in this two year period, so that’s for the rest of 09 and 2010.”

    Young said research commissioned by beyondblue into depression among gay, lesbian and bisexual Australians found that approximately 30 per cent suffered from depression and anxiety compared with between 4 and 14 per cent of heterosexuals.

    “We identified that we needed to do the scoping study which we did undertake with Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society,” Young said.

    “As a result of the study we have just refreshed our website for Youth beyondblue, which is dedicated to gay, lesbian and bisexual youth.

    “We are definitely going to do more as a result of the study. We will commission further research which will aim to improve prevention, detection, diagnoses and treatment of mental health problems and reduce the associated stigma and we look forward to doing that with those who share our interest in it.”

    Young said any suggestion that beyondblue was homophobic was “incorrect”.

    When asked why GLBTI rural youth support group WayOut was unsuccessful in its funding request Young said: “That’s probably because their research application didn’t meet the merit standard, but we do offer support to those who aren’t successful to better understand how they can better present their application next time.”

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    Beyound Blue...Euphemism for institutional bigotry.
    written by Phill Herbert , July 03, 2009

    There will be no moments of illumination from beyondblue in the near future.

    The narration will go something like: A fourteen year old boy suicides. There is no evidence of him being gay and his immediate family and extended circle will not state that this poor lad is definitively gay, therefore he is straight.

    Mental health is largely dominated by straight individuals with a Catholic heritage. The best we will achieve is invisibility. It is a bit like, although not as severe as, putting Jan Wade in charge of equal opportunity.

    Just another hurdle guys. Stories a-plenty have already been told by those who have considered, and attempted suicide, and those who have known a gay colleague to have suicided. Because the storytellers have not actually completed the act without splashing on the walls: ‘I have committed suicide because I am gay, and…’, the stories will be ignored.

    Beyondblue: just public service hacks…

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    Beyondblue report gathers dust
    written by Eric Glare , July 02, 2009

    As an ex-medical researcher living with poor mental health from HIV and bipolar type II, I have read some of the research on GLBTI mental health and was surprised to hear beyondblue claim that before they could act a scoping study was required – which can be found at:
    www.beyondblue.org.au/index.aspx?link_id=6.819

    'Issues Paper 2' was written in Jan 2008 and the executive summary is dated Dec 2008 with the half of the research reviewed conducted before 2004.

    It seems beyondblue has been aware of the scope of GLB mental health for some time. Strangely there was no mention of transgender or intersex people.

    The former summary concludes: "The theme that runs throughout this review is the effects of homophobia and heterosexism on the mental health of non-heterosexual people. In many ways, this points to a burden of poor mental health that may well be entirely preventable. In addressing depression for non-heterosexual people, the most effective response will be to institute measures to combat homophobia and discrimination in the general community and seek to level out many of the differences documented in this report."

    Rather bleeding obvious, yet CEO Young just says they will commission more research. Whilst it is great that beyondblue is supporting research, it is high time they evaluated their own initiatives, particularly their extraordinary long time frames between research, reports and any ideas about action. Perhaps Young should survey their website asking herself if any reasonable person from the GLBTI community would believe her claim of no homophobia.

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    Beyond blue - staggering into the 21st century
    written by Sally Goldner , July 02, 2009

    I totally agree with Rob's comments and reject beyondblue's spin-doctoring.

    Why did they need a scoping study? There is an Everest-high pile of evidence of depression in our communities.

    How can an organisation with a board of supposedly knowledgeable professionals be this far behind?

    And where's the T? How many more years is beyondblue going to have trans blood on its hands while it catches up with reality?

    Beyondblue has red necks.

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    Beyond Blue - The National Depression Embarrassment
    written by Rob Mitchell , July 01, 2009

    “We identified that we needed to do the scoping study...”

    What bullshit. They had to be dragged, kicking and screaming, to commission the La Trobe Uni study. The fact is that beyondblue are not willing to tackle GLBTI depression generally, and particularly GLBTI youth depression.

    As for: "...their research application didn’t meet the merit standard..."

    Wayout is not a research application, it is an award winning project that has been proven to work but is starved of funding and only limps along because Sue Hackney goes cap in hand to philanthropics, living on the smell of an oily rag.

    The sooner we all start pressuring Mental Health Minister Lisa Neville and Health Minister Danile Andrews to take a long hard look at the millions of dollars the Victorian community tips into beyondblue each year, and what we get back, the sooner we will reduce the number of GLBTI people killing themselves.

    Victoria contributes more to beyondblue each year than ALL the other states combined. Over the next few months their funding agreement will be up for renewal, and I will be making sure I get in front of Daniel Andrews and Lisa Neville, and pointing out exactly what the cost of this recalcitrance is.

    Our young people’s lives depend on it.

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