Psychiatry of Old Age Prize for Best Mental Health Service Improvement

This prize is open to all mental health services for improvements focused upon the needs of people with mental illness who are older.

The Faculty of Psychiatry of Old Age Prizes promote excellence in advancing the quality of life in older people with mental illness by encouraging and promoting:

• the highest clinical and ethical standards in the delivery of Psychiatry of Old Age services amongst psychiatry trainees in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand.
• training in Psychiatry of Old Age of the highest standard for psychiatrists, trainee psychiatrists, medical students, related health professionals, students of related health professions and other medical practitioners.

Eligibility criteria

The prize is open to all mental health services, and whilst not having to be within a formal POA service, the improvement must be: 

• Focused upon the needs of people with mental illness who are older.
• Within a public or private mental health service with accreditation against the national mental health standards, or New Zealand equivalent.

Previous recipients of the Award will not be eligible to receive the Award on a further occasion.

Form of award

The Prize comprises of:

• A$500
• an award certificate
• reimbursement of funds to the value of $1500 for RANZCP Congress day registration for one person, economy flights and one night accommodation for one person (to enable the presentation of the winning project and to receive the prize).

All applicants meeting a ‘satisfactory standard’ receive a certificate acknowledging this.

How to apply

Applicants for the Prize are required to submit an anonymised cover letter and an anonymised copy of their work (which is subject of the Prize) to the RANZCP before the due date. 

Submissions should take the form of:

• a published article
• a draft article suitable for publication in a journal equivalent to Australasian Psychiatry
• a case review / study

Key dates

Applications are open annually, from 1 September to 31 October.