Factors Affecting Community Treatment Orders Research Study
A first of its kind study in Australia.
This study brings together experts from various research fields to study the use of law to enforce psychiatric treatment in Australian communities through Community Treatment Orders (CTOs). The use of CTOs in Australia is significantly higher than in other global jurisdictions, and their application varies within Australia itself.
Factors Affecting Community Treatment Orders Research Study (FACTORS) examines the disproportionate impact of CTOs on certain groups and the reasons for their varied use in different locations. It’s the first study to assess the broad impact of CTOs on policy and law. We aim to understand the implications of why and how this forced treatment varies, with the ultimate goal of reducing such coercive actions.
FACTORS Clinician Survey
We are excited to invite all mental health staff to take part in an online survey aimed at exploring the experiences and perceptions of professionals working with individuals on community treatment orders (CTOs).
This survey is open to any mental health professional involved in providing care to those under CTOs. You will be asked about your experiences with CTOs, including your insights into when, why, and how CTOs are implemented.
For more information, read this participant information sheet. [PDF 229.5 KB]
Project investigators
Our dedicated team comprises of experts from diverse fields such as law, policy analysis, data research, and social sciences. We are unravelling the complex factors influencing the use of CTOs.
- Professor Lisa Brophy | Principal Investigator
- Associate Professor Chris Maylea | Co-Lead and Chief Investigator
- Professor Steve Kisely | Chief Investigator and Administrative Health Data Analysis Lead
- Professor Penelope Weller | Chief Investigator and Law and Policy Lead
- Professor Sharon Lawn | Chief Investigator and Qualitative Data Collection and Analysis Lead
- Vrinda Edan | Chief Investigator and Lived Experience Lead
- Dr Edwina Light | Chief Investigator
- Associate Professor Christopher Ryan | Partner Investigator
- Associate Professor Giles Newton-Howes | Partner Investigator
- Dr Claudia Bull | Biostatistician
- Paul Armitage | PhD Candidate
- Bianca Mandeville | PhD Candidate
- Tessa-May Zirnsak | Project Manager
Project updates
2024
Our research has been recognised on an international stage with the acceptance of two symposiums at the planned 2024 International Academy of Law and Mental Health in Barcelona. This opportunity will allow us to share our findings and exchange ideas with a global audience, contributing to the ongoing conversation around the implications that CTOs have for human rights.
Last month, we made significant progress by acquiring data on CTO rates in Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, and South Australia. States vary in the use of CTOs and, even within the same states, some services exhibit more than a 20% difference in CTO rates, even after accounting for forensic and child and adolescent services.
Access to the data will enable us to select 10 services with high CTO usage and 10 services with low usage to gain deeper insights into how CTO are being implemented and what accounts for the amount of variation across and within Australian states. We are currently developing a survey for service users, supporters, and staff, which we plan to launch next month, in collaboration with our lived experience advisory group. Following this, we will conduct a qualitative study focusing on two high-use and two low-use services.
Meanwhile, our law and policy team has been investigating the differences in legislation and policy across Australia and the relationship between the availability of policy and the rates of CTO usage. So far, we have discovered that there is a wide variation in the amount of policy across the four states than we initially anticipated. This finding has been resulted in the need for considerable analysis and the formulation of understanding about the role of policy in the use of CTOs.
We were able to present and discuss our preliminary findings at an event at la Trobe city campus on the 6th May attended by consumers, carers, service providers and others interested in our research. This helped us develop further ideas about FACTORS driving CTO use in Australia and the implications of our research.
We are excited about the upcoming phases of our study and look forward to sharing more insights and findings with you soon.
2023
Significant progress was made this year as we secured access to CTO data across New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria. This data means that we can accurately study CTO practices across these three states, and in 2024 we are hoping to add data from South Australia.
An integral part of this project is to understand the realities faced by individuals affected by CTOs. This Advisory Group will ensure that our research remains grounded as we move forward in 2024.
This panel have been instrumental in broadening our approach to understanding the complexities surrounding CTOs in Australia. These experts have shaped our research methodologies, and provided insights into relevant mental health policies, legal contexts and the application of CTOs globally.
An international expert panel examined recent developments in the limitations and challenges of CTOs in use across Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Listen to their valuable insights around the ethical and human rights concerns in this webinar presented by La Trobe University’s Law in Context Research Cluster and Social Change and Equity Research Theme.