Almost half of all Australians experience some form of mental health problem at some time in their life.
Mental health conditions are complex, costly and often chronic. They can impact the lives of individuals, families and communities.
Being mentally healthy is not just the absence of illness – it’s also about being socially and emotionally well.
Our work in this area is guided by our Mental Health, Alcohol and Other Drugs Program Strategy.
While we do not provide clinical services ourselves, Primary Health Tasmania has commissioned primary mental health services for:
Search Our Services Portal to find out details about the mental health services we commission.
Primary Health Tasmania is overseeing the phased introduction of Medicare Mental Health Centres in Tasmania.
The Launceston Medicare Mental Health Centre opened in 2022, the Devonport Medicare Mental Health Centre opened in September 2025, and the Burnie Medicare Mental Health Centre opened at an interim site in January 2026.
The Australian Government is also funding a new Medicare Mental Health Centre in Glenorchy, in Hobart’s northern suburbs – and we are leading this work.
The Government has also committed to funding Primary Health Tasmania to establish a Medicare Mental Health Centre in Brighton in southern Tasmania. We will commission a provider to establish and operate this new service once the funding has been received.
Like the existing centres, the new services will provide a safe and welcoming place for anyone to access free, quality mental health care over extended hours. Families and friends will also be able to receive information and advice.
There is no charge for services at Medicare Mental Health Centres, and appointments and referrals aren’t needed.
The centres complement – rather than replace or duplicate – services already provided in the community, and connect people with other local services for ongoing care.
Primary Health Tasmania has commissioned Stride Mental Health to deliver services from the Launceston, Devonport, Burnie and Glenorchy Medicare Mental Health Centres.
While the Glenorchy centre is being established, an interim telehealth service is available to provide telephone-based mental health support to people living in these areas. People can call 1800 595 212 between 8.30am and 5pm, Monday to Friday.
Read more on Our Services Portal.
Primary Health Tasmania has commissioned a new service called Connected Care – Mental Health for adults with mild, moderate, or severe and complex mental illness.
This is a single service being established across the State in place of a number of existing mental health services commissioned by Primary Health Tasmania, with the aim of improving access, coordination and continuity of care for Tasmanian adults.
Design of the new Connected Care – Mental Health service was informed by our Mental Health Continuum of Care Project, which with the aim of improving access, coordination and continuity of care for Tasmanians.
Read more here.
Primary Health Tasmania is establishing multidisciplinary mental health services in the Glamorgan Spring Bay and West Coast local government areas through the Australian Government’s Mental Health Multidisciplinary Services program.
Funded by the Australian Government, the services will be funded to June 2028 to support people with complex mental health needs through multidisciplinary care delivered within primary care settings.
The service model places general practice at the centre of shared care and care coordination, and also provides opportunities for partnership with Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations (ACCHOs) where appropriate to local service delivery.
Supported by a team of health professionals working together to provide integrated, person-centred care, this approach aims to improve access to mental health services closer to home, particularly in rural and remote communities where workforce shortages and fragmented services can make it difficult to access coordinated support.
In July 2026, Primary Health Tasmania will release an open tender for the delivery of these services.
Further information about these services will be available once the tender has been completed.
When we talk about psychosocial support, we’re talking about programs and activities designed to help people with a severe mental illness increase their functioning in day-to-day life.
Primary Health Tasmania has commissioned the delivery of psychosocial support services in Tasmania. We are also working with stakeholders to identify and address barriers faced by people with mental illness when testing for the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).
Tasmania’s mental health Central Intake and Referral Service (CIRS) aims to make it easier for Tasmanians to find the mental health support they need.
GPs and other health professionals can use the CIRS for assistance in connecting their patients to appropriate mental health care and support.
The CIRS intake team helps assess patients’ needs and then connects them to the level of care that most suits their needs at the time. This might be a public, private or community service.
More information about the CIRS – an Australian and Tasmanian government collaboration – is available here.
Primary Health Tasmania is implementing the mental health Initial Assessment and Referral (IAR) digital decision support tool, which aims to standardise the assessment of people presenting with mental health conditions to ensure they’re matched to the care that most suits their needs at the time.
The IAR tool draws on evidence-based Australian Government guidance that aims to make it easier for clinicians to recommend the most appropriate level of care for a person seeking mental health support.
Tasmanian clinicians can access free training on IAR and use of the IAR tool to match a person’s initial mental health assessment scores to the most appropriate level of care, helping to inform the referral process.
More information about IAR is available here.
Primary Health Tasmania, in collaboration with the National MyMedicare PHN Implementation program, has developed a resource to support general practices to implement changes to the Better Access initiative which apply from Saturday 1 November.
Click here to read more.
Primary Health Tasmania, along with the Tasmanian Department of Health and the Tasmanian Health Service, has partnered with the Mental Health Council of Tasmania, the National Disability Insurance Agency, Flourish and Mental Health Families and Friends Tasmania to develop a new approach to mental health service planning and delivery.
The result is Rethink 2020, which comes five years after the Tasmanian Government published its plan to improve mental health outcomes for all Tasmanians: Rethink Mental Health Better Mental Health and Wellbeing – A Long-Term Plan for Mental Health in Tasmania 2015-25.
Rethink 2020 takes stock of key milestones achieved so far – such as progress towards mental health integration hubs, improved youth mental health support in the north west, and the launch of a mental health peer workforce strategy – while also elevating new areas of focus as key mental health priorities for the state.
eMental health refers to the use of the web and other communication technologies to provide mental health services and support, such as online support groups, podcasts and apps.
The eMHPrac – e-mental health in practice – project is an Australian Government initiative that aims to raise practitioner awareness and knowledge of digital mental health by providing training and support.
The Medicare Mental Health website also provides comprehensive information and collated resources for health professionals and consumers alike.
The National Communications Charter is a unifying, evidence-informed resource to guide the way mental health and suicide prevention sectors, government, business and community members talk about mental health concerns and suicide.
Primary Health Tasmania aligns its suicide prevention communications with the National Communications Charter, supporting its application in Tasmania as the national best‑practice framework for safe and stigma‑free conversations about mental health and suicide.
You can find out more here.
Primary Health Tasmania does not offer health services, crisis, or emergency support.
Your regular general practitioner/doctors surgery should always be your first point of call if you need medical or mental health care
In an emergency, call Triple 0 (000) for Ambulance, Fire or Police.
For health advice on health services open at night, public holidays and weekends, visit the Tas After Hours website.
The following helplines are also available for urgent assistance: