Dr Susie Fletcher

Dr Susie Fletcher is an experienced health services researcher with expertise in mental health, primary care, and service integration. She is passionate about improving health outcomes through integrating services across health sectors.

Susie’s qualifications include a PhD, Postgraduate Diploma in Psychology, and a Bachelor of Applied Science in Psychology. Her PhD examined the prediction of psychiatric disorder and related conditions in people who were hospitalised with a serious injury.

Susie has published extensively and presented her work at both national and international forums.  Recent publications authored by Susie include:

• Matching depression management to severity prognosis in primary care: results of the Target-D randomised controlled trial – published in the British Journal of General Practice.
• Clinical efficacy of a Decision Support Tool (Link-me) to guide intensity of mental health care in primary practice: a pragmatic stratified randomised controlled trial – published by the Lancet Psychiatry.

Prior to joining AHA, Susie was a Senior Research Fellow and Deputy Lead of the Integrated Mental Health Research Program at the Department of General Practice at the University of Melbourne. In this role, she attained a strong understanding of, and connections with, the Primary Health Networks (PHNs). Working closely with government and PHNs, she managed a range of complex projects including the Department of Health-funded Evaluation of the Primary Health Network Mental Health Lead Site Project. She was also a member of the Advisory Group for the National PHN Guidance for Initial Assessment and Referral for Mental Healthcare, and led the review of the implementation of that Guidance.

Previously, Susie worked at Phoenix Australia – the Australian National Centre for Excellence in Post-traumatic Mental Health. She played a key role in major Pheonix projects, including:

• The Australian Guidelines for the Management of Acute Stress Disorder and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder
• Development of mental health screening and evaluation frameworks for the Australian Defence Force.