Headspace Organisation: Suicide Ideation in Young Indigenous Australians | Business Risk Analysis Assignment

Background:

“headspace” (yes small ‘h’) is an organisation that works with youth aged 12 to 25 who experience mental ill health. Youth suicide in regional NSW for the age groups 16 to 24 was particularly alarming, especially amongst Indigenous youth. One of the problems identified was that a young person with suicidal ideation might see multiple professionals before getting the help they need. Each time they need to re-tell their ‘story’. Soon the young people clam up and say very little, making it even harder for professionals to help them. Initially they might see a headspace case worker, then medical staff in a hospital emergency department, perhaps a General Practitioner, a psychologist, a psychiatrist, and others.

Currently funding is being sought to build a system that will capture the ‘story’ the first time it is told. This will give access to successive professionals, so that case notes and the story can become enriched, and the young person can be assisted more appropriately. We will assume that the funding has been approved and that you are the business systems analyst assigned to scope out the project. You need to:

• Describe the problem in your own words, outlining the business risks you identify
• List any questions that need to be directed to the sponsor (only list the questions you want to ask, do not write answers)

Specific analysis techniques have not been taught yet, so this assignment does not require technical descriptions. Your answer should be a report of 2-3 pages, Times Roman size 12 (title page and references are not counted in the 2-3 pages). You should use your own words and avoid lengthy quotations.

Solution:

Indigenous youth suicide (especially in northern Australian communities) has been claimed to be the highest in the world (Lindeman et al 2013). A 2013 government report indicates that young indigenous Australians (between the ages of 10-25) are approximately 5 times more likely to inflict self-harm as compared to their non-indigenous peers (Luke et al 2013).

In addition to societal pressures and indulgence in alcohol and drug abuse, part of the problem lies in inability to get proper help as and when required. Close friends are usually the first point of contact for young individuals with suicidal intentions (Clifford et al 2013). A significant percentage of these individuals don’t even realise that they require professional help. Further, they might have to talk to a variety of professionals (including psychiatrists, general practitioners and others) before finally receiving the help that they need (Lindeman et al 2013). Lack of a comprehensive system to concisely collect and store information warrants that individuals reiterate their story every time they meet a new professional. This ends up being an additional pressure and defers individuals from seeking professional help (Luke et al 2013).

So as to ensure that young persons are assisted more effectively, it is essential that their story is captured the very first time and recorded effectively. This would ensure that successive professionals are able to refer to case notes and present more appropriate solutions (Harlow & Clough 2014). Although potentially beneficial and positively aimed, the proposal is not free from business risks. Effective capturing of an individual’s story presents the first and most significant business risk. In order for the system to be able to help individuals, it is essential that professionals who act as the first point of contact are able to effectively gather and record the individual’s account (Clifford et al 2013). It is necessary that these individuals are not biased, are good listeners and are trained to capture maximum amount of information possible (Ridani et al 2015). Inability to properly record an individual’s story would defeat the entire purpose of presenting this solution and hence is the most important business risk (Lindeman et al 2013).

Another major business risk lies in preserving the confidentiality of information gathered. It would be absolutely essential that information provided by individuals is only accessible to them and healthcare professionals that they get in touch with (Cox et al 2014). Any breach of this information could pose a direct threat to the concerned individual’s job, family and overall status in the society. This would again defeat the purpose of the proposed solution and might also invite legal trouble (Tomyn et al 2013).

A third important business risk might be identified in making the system usable. It is essential that mentally ill individuals are able to pass security measures designed to keep their information safe and access information (Tomyn et al 2013). Further, it would also be essential to develop a platform that is simple to use for professionals and keeps track of help taken. Failure to make the system usable would tend to reduce the effectiveness and applicability of the proposed solution and would therefore pose a business risk (Luke et al 2013).

In line with these business risks and intentions to develop a solution, it might be essential to ask the following few questions to the sponsor:

• What would be your role in this project?
• What is the final outcome that you want to achieve through this project?
• What is your primary target group?
• Would you require to hire any additional workforce for recording information?
• Would you help train the workforce and professionals in using the system?
• What measures would you put in place to ensure that the project meets its goals?