title: Characteristics of People Who Use Telephone Counseling: Findings from Secondary Analysis of a Population-Based Study.
abstract: The characteristics of people who use telephone counseling are not well understood. This secondary analysis used data from a nationally representative community survey of 8,841 Australian adults to compare callers and non-callers to telephone counseling services. Callers have a poorer clinical profile, including a higher risk of suicide, than people who do not use telephone counseling. They also use a variety of other mental health services. Repeat calls are associated with anxiety disorders, receipt of mental health care from general practitioners, and social disadvantage. All callers have a potential need for telephone counseling and further population studies that distinguish between telephone services intended to provide crisis (one-off) and ongoing counseling are warranted.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Mental Health, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Victoria, 3010, Australia, b.bassilios@unimelb.edu.au.
authors.forename: Bridget
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bassilios
authors.forename: Meredith
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Harris
authors.forename: Aves
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Middleton
authors.forename: Jane
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gunn
authors.forename: Jane
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pirkis
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D001315:Australia / Q000453:epidemiology; D003376:Counseling / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003419:Crisis Intervention / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D058006:General Practice; D015277:Hotlines / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology; D008605:Mental Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012306:Risk; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013405:Suicide / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013689:Telephone; D055815:Young Adult