Toward better coordinated initiatives for community health management and crime prevention in Australia

Since Australian states federated in 1901, attainment of community health and maintenance of law and order have been separate policy concerns. However, mental health problems and drug abuse are linked to crime, and young people in poorer communities are particularly at risk of being victims and perpetrators. In the 1980s, a nationally developed, regionally administered, data-driven and consultative approach to community health management began, consistent with World Health Organization policy. A coordinated approach to community stress reduction, which is also aimed at crime prevention and community-based rehabilitation, has now commenced. The national trends are described in international context and also in New South Wales, Australia's most populous state. Community management goals now require greater support through vocational education, service, and research partnerships among tertiary institutions, government, industry, and communities, undertaken in regional contexts.