Lakeman, R. (2020). Sisyphus and the struggle for recognition of Mental Health Nursing (Feature Article), Summer News 2020, Year in Review. The Australian College of Mental Health Nurses, p.3-9, Online: https://www.flipsnack.com/acmhn/acmhn-yearinreview.htm

Albert Camus used the myth of Sisyphus to illustrate his philosophy of the absurd. Having scorned the Gods, Sisyphus was destined to roll or carry a rock up-hill each day, and then watch it roll back down, repeating this struggle each day for eternity. This myth captures the ongoing struggle that mental health nurses (MHNs) have in realising any meaningful recognition of the skills they possess or even that they exist at all. This opinion piece is part reflection on the past year which commenced with catastrophic bushfires which was followed by COVID and an unprecedented need for a psychotherapeutic response from competent practitioners skilled in psychotherapy. MHNs were excluded by the Australian Government from providing subsidised psychotherapeutic services. These challenges facing MHNs  are entwined around recognition of the psychotherapeutic capabilities of MHNs, the instrumental relationship of nursing to medicine and the challenges of working in a hierarchical and highly coercive care system, and lastly how entrenched managerialism and the trend towards centralised and protocol driven practices has impacted on professional autonomy. Mental health nursing as a specialty faces an existential crisis which will not be resolved until their psychotherapeutic potential is recognised and MHNs have parity of access to the medicare benefits scheme as often lesser skilled practitioners currently do.

Please sign and promote the petition  and web pages on valuing psychotherapy and mental health nursing. Please also talk to your Federal or State member of parliament about this issue!