TY - JOUR
AU - Z. Cooper
AU - B. Roberts
AU - G. Landery
AU - S. Woodland
AU - K. R. L. Collins
AU - B. T. Majda
AU - S. Stanley
AU - A. Akkari
AU - S. D. Hood
AU - J. Rodger
A1 - 
AB - BACKGROUND: Young people often face significant challenges accessing effective mental health support as they navigate through complex healthcare systems, education pathways, and social pressures. Understanding the service-level barriers they encounter is critical to improving mental health system design and delivery. While previous studies have examined individual barriers to mental healthcare access, few have adopted a cross-sectorial, youth-informed approach which captures the interrelated structural, institutional, and socio-cultural factors influencing young people’s mental health experiences. METHODS: Seventeen participants aged 18–24 years with lived experience of depression and/or anxiety participated in nine in-person focus groups and interviews in Perth. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to identify systemic barriers and facilitators to mental healthcare, with a particular focus on access, care coordination, therapeutic engagement, and service responsiveness. RESULTS: Key themes included fragmented care pathways, inadequate provider follow-up, prolonged wait times, financial constraints, lack of youth-specific mental health training among clinicians, and limited therapeutic rapport. Participants also described inadequate mental health literacy within schools and persistent stigma in social and familial settings. These intersecting barriers hindered access, disrupted continuity of care, and undermined trust in the mental health system. CONCLUSIONS: Findings highlight critical inefficiencies in mental health service delivery for young Australians. Policy responses should prioritise integrated care models, investment in multidisciplinary youth mental health hubs, improved school-based mental health literacy, and culturally inclusive anti-stigma initiatives to promote access, trust, and continuity of care.
AD - Perron Institute for Neurological and Translational Science, Nedlands, WA, Australia. zahra.cooper@perron.uwa.edu.au.; Perron Institute for Neurological and Translational Science, Nedlands, WA, Australia.; School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia.; School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia.; Rural Clinical School, The University of Western Australia, Perth, 6009, Australia.; Division of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia.; North Metropolitan Health Service, Western Australian Department of Health, Nedlands, WA, Australia.; Curtin Medical School, Curtin University, Bentley, WA, Australia.; Centre for Molecular Medicine and Innovative Therapeutics, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA, Australia.; WA Suicide Prevention and Resilience Research Centre (SPARRC), The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia.
AN - 41126214
BT - BMC Health Serv Res
C5 - Healthcare Disparities
CP - 1
DA - Oct 22
DO - 10.1186/s12913-025-13580-1
DP - NLM
ET - 20251022
IS - 1
JF - BMC Health Serv Res
LA - eng
N2 - BACKGROUND: Young people often face significant challenges accessing effective mental health support as they navigate through complex healthcare systems, education pathways, and social pressures. Understanding the service-level barriers they encounter is critical to improving mental health system design and delivery. While previous studies have examined individual barriers to mental healthcare access, few have adopted a cross-sectorial, youth-informed approach which captures the interrelated structural, institutional, and socio-cultural factors influencing young people’s mental health experiences. METHODS: Seventeen participants aged 18–24 years with lived experience of depression and/or anxiety participated in nine in-person focus groups and interviews in Perth. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to identify systemic barriers and facilitators to mental healthcare, with a particular focus on access, care coordination, therapeutic engagement, and service responsiveness. RESULTS: Key themes included fragmented care pathways, inadequate provider follow-up, prolonged wait times, financial constraints, lack of youth-specific mental health training among clinicians, and limited therapeutic rapport. Participants also described inadequate mental health literacy within schools and persistent stigma in social and familial settings. These intersecting barriers hindered access, disrupted continuity of care, and undermined trust in the mental health system. CONCLUSIONS: Findings highlight critical inefficiencies in mental health service delivery for young Australians. Policy responses should prioritise integrated care models, investment in multidisciplinary youth mental health hubs, improved school-based mental health literacy, and culturally inclusive anti-stigma initiatives to promote access, trust, and continuity of care.
PY - 2025
SN - 1472-6963
SP - 1402
ST - Exploring the perspectives of young adults on mental healthcare and systemic health, education, and social challenges in Australia: a qualitative study
T1 - Exploring the perspectives of young adults on mental healthcare and systemic health, education, and social challenges in Australia: a qualitative study
T2 - BMC Health Serv Res
TI - Exploring the perspectives of young adults on mental healthcare and systemic health, education, and social challenges in Australia: a qualitative study
U1 - Healthcare Disparities
U3 - 10.1186/s12913-025-13580-1
VL - 25
VO - 1472-6963
Y1 - 2025
ER -