Lifeline's exceptional contribution acknowledged

Release date: 07 Sep 2004

Lifeline is the 2004 winner of the award for “Exceptional contribution to mental health services in Australia”. This prestigious award acknowledges Lifeline as a principal service provider for mental health in Australia.

Lifeline is thrilled to accept this honour as part of The Australian and New Zealand Mental Health Achievement Awards, which were announced at last weeks TheMHS Conference on the Gold Coast.

The award was presented by Prof Allan Fels AO on behalf of TheMHS in recognition of the outstanding achievement of Lifeline. The 24 hour, 7 days per week national counselling telephone helpline is staffed by trained volunteers and operates throughout rural and regional Australia from over 60 locations.

“I am thrilled and very proud to accept this award on behalf of Lifeline,” said Ms Dawn Smith, CEO of Lifeline Australia. “Last year Lifeline’s 4,500 volunteer telephone counsellors answered 450, 289 calls, of these over 80,000 calls (or 27%) were known to be about mental health. Lifeline is now operative in 250 communities across the world and represents a unique Australian primary mental health care promotion, prevention and interventional tool.”

Each year individuals and groups are nominated for this award by their peers to acknowledge the exceptional contribution, the result of which will flow on to enhance the mental health and wellbeing of all. The winner is then selected by a panel of experts from across Australia and New Zealand.

Media Contact: Dawn Smith (ph: (02) 6215 9400)