The e-Mental Health in Practice (eMHPrac) program is a national Australian initiative established in 2013 to bridge the gap between the availability of evidence-based digital mental health services and their practical uptake by health professionals.
Funded by the Australian Government, eMHPrac delivers training, resources, and support to primary care and Indigenous health practitioners to encourage the safe, effective integration of digital mental health services tools into clinical practice. For this program, the tools are Australian funded, developed and low-cost.
Operating across multiple states and territories, the eMHPrac consortium includes Queensland University of Technology (lead agency), the Black Dog Institute, the University Centre for Rural Health (University of Sydney), the Menzies School of Health Research and the Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet at Edith Cowan University. The Australian National University was a consortium partner during the program’s initial phase, from 2013 to 2016.
Implementation Strategies and Insights
Over time, eMHPrac’s implementation strategies have become grounded in a clear framework of the core functions that digital mental health tools can serve. These include:
1) Capacity Building
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eMHPrac tailors training to the roles and constraints of different professions:
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General Practitioners: Short consult-compatible resources and brief follow-ups
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Psychologists and Allied Health: Adjunctive tools for education, self-monitoring, and relapse prevention
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Indigenous Health Workers: Culturally appropriate resources in local languages for use during sessions
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Training content is aligned with behaviour change theory, emphasising brief, practical strategies to prompt use, reinforce learning and reduce clinician burnout.
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eMHPrac uses multiple access points which are tailored to busy clinicians needing low-burden and practical training options:
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Face-to-face and online workshops offering practice, feedback, and expert guidance
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Face-to-face and online awareness presentations
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Webinars and recorded modules, accessible on demand
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Directories of digital tools, including printed and online formats searchable by mental health issue, target group, or delivery mode
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The WellMob portal, co-developed with First Nations communities, listing 500+ culturally safe digital wellbeing tools.
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2) Practitioner Engagement
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Ongoing engagement includes podcasts (e.g., Digital Health Musings), newsletters, and blog posts that highlight specific services and tools and emerging evidence.
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Regular presentations and trade exhibits at national conferences informs practitioners about digital mental health resources, their evidence base and advantages, and focuses on increasing knowledge, modifying negative attitudes and building motivation for their use.
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Utilisation of social media to deliver brief reminders and tips.
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Sustained cross-sector collaboration to boost practitioner engagement by creating trust, relevance, visibility and system alignment.
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Encouragement of digital champions within services and teams.
3) Policy Influence and Advice
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The consortium regularly engages with the Australian Department of Health and Aged Care, contributing to national strategies, safety standards, program design and workforce development.
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It plays a key role in promoting shifts toward digital social and emotional wellbeing supports for First Nations communities.
Training and Engagement Activities
The data below covers the period from 2015 to 2023. Data for 2024 is currently being analysed, with a 10-year summary paper and a separate publication evaluating training outcomes both in development.
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469 training sessions (workshops, webinars, modules) reaching over 49,000 participants
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448 presentations and 222 trade exhibits at professional events
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739,181 eMHPrac website sessions
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226,100 visits to the Indigenous-focused WellMob portal
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65,857 digital guides and 105,444 brochures distributed
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2,860 newsletters, podcasts, and social media updates published
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32,535 blog readings were recorded
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Social media outreach reached nearly 1.9 million users.
Figure 1. Training events for health professionals across Australia
Digital Mental Health Service Use
Large-scale, sustained implementation activity across Australia was associated with substantially increased registrations and referrals to digital services during this period. While these results likely had multiple determinants, eMHPrac’s work is seen as a key contributor. Practitioner referrals to digital mental health services rose by 202%, and user registrations increased by 151% from 2015 to 2023. Despite a 23% drop in registrations post-COVID peak in 2020, referrals remained high, with only a 3% decline.
All except The BRAVE Program were services for adults that were funded by the Australian government. BRAVE is the largest Australian digital mental health provider of programs for children and adolescents. The eight selected were in continuous operation during this time, provided yearly data, and had a median of at least 4,000 new users over the 9 years. All were developed by research groups from Australian universities or affiliated organizations and employ cognitive-behavioral treatments: BiteBack, The BRAVE Program, eCouch, Mental Health Online, MindSpot, MoodGym, MyCompass, and THIS WAY UP.
Challenges Identified
Despite growing consumer acceptance of digital options, significant implementation barriers remain for the health workforce in embedding these tools into routine practice:
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The need for further brief training options for time-poor practitioners to improve awareness, confidence and perceived relevance of digital options.
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Misconceptions about the effectiveness of digital tools for older adults or individuals with complex needs.
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Behaviour change takes time, requiring sustained effort and reinforcement.
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Management and organisational support is required, particularly through policies, procedures, and leadership endorsement.
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Digital integration barriers within health services with limited infrastructure or digital literacy.
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Challenges in measuring practitioner referrals to the full spectrum of digital mental health options, such as apps, online peer support, and web-based counselling services.
Future Directions
Considerable scope exists for future eMHPrac activities:
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Expand Reach and Scale
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A significant proportion of the 500,000+ Australian registered health practitioners are yet to be trained.
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eMHPrac aims to expand training access, particularly through low-cost digital delivery and tailored outreach to rural and remote areas.
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Engage Broader Workforce
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Address the unmet demand for training from the broader health workforce including peer workers, paramedics, workplace wellbeing staff and Mental Health First Aiders. These groups that are often frontline access points for people in distress and their engagement represents a key opportunity for low-cost, high-impact expansion.
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Organizational Change
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Embedding digital mental health in healthcare settings requires change beyond individual practitioners.
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Expand organizational readiness work with Indigenous organisations to a wider range of mainstream services, integrating digital tools into workflows and policies.
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System-Level Integration – Recommendations for long-term sustainability include:
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Embedding digital mental health in university curricula and practitioner competencies.
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Creating Medicare or insurance coverage for reputable digital services with coaching.
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Introducing digital navigator roles within health teams to support digital integration, similar to initiatives underway in the UK.
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AI and Adaptive Technology
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Incorporate AI in training programs to help practitioners navigate an increasingly complex and evolving digital ecosystem.
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Practitioner Feedback
Summary
eMHPrac demonstrates that a coordinated, nationwide approach to promoting digital mental health can significantly increase service awareness, referrals, and practitioner confidence. Continued investment in training, organizational change, and digital access is essential to maintain momentum and meet the growing mental health needs of Australians. As an internationally unique initiative, eMHPrac offers a valuable model for embedding digital mental health into routine care, both within Australia and globally.
