One of the most advanced virtual reality simulations ever applied to an Australian health care system is set to shape the future of mental health services.

 

Two researchers at the Gippsland School of Information Technology (GSIT), Dr Joarder Kamruzzaman and Dr Gour Karmakar, with a team led by Professor Graham Meadows, from the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Science have been awarded an ARC Linkage Grant to develop the first population-based computer simulation able to accurately represent current and future demands on the mental health system.

 

It will be developed in partnership with Southern Health, one of Victoria's largest mental health providers, as well as experts from the Monash Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Science and the Faculty of Business and Economics.

 

Dr Karmakar said this was the first time such a diverse group had been assembled to analyse a mental health care system anywhere outside the US.

 

The model will predict future needs based on projected population growth, treatment innovations and policy changes.

 

Dr Karmakar said the proposed computer model would help guide future management decisions about how best to structure health care services.

 

"This simulation model allows decision makers to perform ‘what-if’ analyses in terms of admissions, discharges, waiting time, length of stay, policy changes, etc," Dr Karmakar said.

 

"Applying  this in government and industry will not only help relieve the burden of mental illness on individuals, but also produce more efficient, effective and evidence-based mental health services, making better use of the community’s limited resources.

 

"The model will adopt a population-based rather than institution-based approach that goes beyond what has previously been attempted in the mental health field."

 

The simulation model is expected to be in operation within Southern Health's mental Health Program in three years.