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Dear colleagues,

The Department of Health is seeking your valuable input to support the development of the next iteration of the Mental Health and Wellbeing Workforce Strategy. Your input will directly inform the future priorities and direction for the mental health workforce and our sector. You can share your input by either:
• Completing a voluntary short survey (approximately 10 minutes) AND / OR
• Providing a written submission with more detailed feedback

The survey and submission seek staff views on workforce attraction, retention, worker safety and wellbeing and other system-wide factors that enable a stronger and sustainable mental health and wellbeing workforce.

Your responses will go directly to the Department of Health and will not be shared with your employer. The survey and submission do not require you to provide any personal or identifying information, and you will remain anonymous. The survey is interested in your views regarding attraction, retention and wellbeing of the mental health workforce.

Before participating, please read the below Collection Notice about privacy and your rights as a respondent.

Please submit your responses by Friday, 30 January 2026.

Link to the survey here: Mental Health and Wellbeing Workforce Survey – Fill out form

Link to the written submission here: Written submission: The next Victorian Mental Health and Wellbeing Workforce Strategy – Fill out form

For any questions about the survey, submission or the Strategy, please contact the Mental Health Reform Design team at the Department of Health: mentalhealthworkforce@health.vic.gov.au.

The Victorian Department of Health (“Department”) is undertaking a Microsoft Forms survey and inviting Microsoft Forms written submissions from current and former staff (“Staff”) of the mental health sector (“Sector”) to inform the development of the next phase of implementation of the Mental Health and Wellbeing Workforce Strategy (“Strategy”). The Sector comprises of organisations offering mental health services, including public hospitals, private hospitals, private practice organisations (group or individual), Aboriginal community-controlled organisations, community health organisations, non-government organisations, peak bodies, professional associations, unions, education providers and self-employed individuals. The Strategy aligns with the Department’s 10-year Health Workforce Strategy, and the Statewide Mental Health and Wellbeing Service and Capital Plan 2024-37. The Strategy seeks to further the Department’s objectives for mental health in implementing the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System (“Royal Commission”) and creating a stronger and more sustainable workforce.

The Department is committed to protecting the privacy of all current and former Staff in the Sector. This Collection Notice describes how information provided by you as a Staff member of the Sector will be used, disclosed and handled, in accordance with the Department’s obligations under the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 (Vic), the Health Records Act 2001 (Vic), the Health Services Act 1988 (Vic) and the Public Records Act 1973 (Vic).

Completing the survey and/or providing a written submission to the Department is voluntary. You have the option not to respond to any question in the survey and/or in the written submission. You may choose to discontinue participating in the survey and/or in the written submission at any time and your partial responses will be deleted.

What information is the Department collecting?
The survey and written submission consist of questions asking you about your experiences with: working in the Sector; what changes since the Royal Commission have made the greatest difference to how you and your service delivers care to consumers and their families; what influences individuals to start a career in the Sector including your own motivations; what changes need to be made to make a career in the Sector more attractive to workers; how your organisation can better respond to some of the recruitment barriers experienced in your service area or region; what changes need to be made to support workers to stay in the Sector in the long-term; what changes would strengthen physical and psychological safety and wellbeing for workers across the Sector; and any additional insights, experiences or priorities you would like the Department to consider in developing the Strategy.

The written submission asks you to provide your position title and the name of your organisation, however, you do not need to provide your name or any other contact details to participate in the survey and/or in the written submission.

The Department asks that you strictly do not include any identifying personal, sensitive or health information (about you or anyone else) when completing the survey and/or written submission. Any disclosure of identifying information is voluntary and any identifying information that is inadvertently submitted, will be redacted by the Department. Not participating in the survey and/or in the written submission does not in any way, affect your employment and engagement in the Sector.

How will your information be used?
Your responses to the survey and/or the written submission will only be sent to and read by the Department’s Mental Health Reform Design and Mental Health Workforce teams and will be considered in the development of the Strategy to determine key gaps and focus for the next phase of workforce reforms.

To whom will your information be disclosed?
Responses to the survey and written submissions will be aggregated and trend analysis may be shared within the Department’s Mental Health Growth team, Mental Health Development team, Workforce Strategy and Planning branch and the Hospital and Health Services Division, the Mental Health and Wellbeing Division, Safer Care Victoria and the Victorian Collaborative Centre for Mental Health and Wellbeing for the purpose of guiding future workforce planning and policy formulation. No survey responses or written submissions will be identifiable in the Strategy. No survey responses or written submissions will be published or made publicly available.

How will your information be stored?
The Department has security measures designed to protect personal information from misuse, loss, unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. The Department will take reasonable steps to destroy information if it is no longer needed for any purpose, in line with the Public Records Act 1973 (Vic). How can you seek access to or correction of your information? You have the right to access and correct your information held by the Department. For details, refer to the Department’s Privacy Policy located here: https://www.health.vic.gov.au/department-of-health-privacy-policy.

Questions
For questions about this Collection Notice, the survey, written submissions or your rights, please contact the Department’s Mental Health Workforce team at MentalHealthWorkforce@health.vic.gov.au. Additionally, please refer to the notice and instructions sheet for the survey and written submissions before you participate. This Collection Notice is intended to ensure transparency in the Department’s administration of the Sector Staff survey and written submissions relating to the development of the next phase of the Strategy. Thank you for your engagement with the Department and for contributing to a meaningful review of the Strategy.