From the President
Abstract
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 From the President Dr Maria Tomasic There are diverse opinions within the profession as to whether the College should be involved in political issues and advocacy. There is strength and longevity to the College in being aware, involved, relevant and a contributor to mental health issues and debate. Just as psychiatrists do not work in isolation, psychiatry and the College do not exist in isolation and we need to be aware of external factors in the mental health landscape. As medical practitioners and psychiatrists we have unique skills and expertise and a holistic view of mental illness. The biopsychosocial and cultural model of formulation equips us well to look at and understand the broad issues of individual and community mental health factors. By being engaged with consumer and carer organisations, other health professionals, politics, government and other organisations