Mental Health Line

Mental Health Line 1800 011511

The 1800 011 511 Mental Health Line is NSW Health's 24/7 statewide phone service which links people with NSW Health mental health services. It is a free service.

It is staffed by trained mental health professionals who:

  • offer mental health advice
  • complete a brief assessment
  • make recommendations for appropriate care, including referral to NSW Health mental health services.

The mental health professional will ask you questions to understand your needs and recommend appropriate services.

When to contact the Mental Health Line

You may want to contact the NSW Mental Health Line if you are worried about your own or someone else's mental health. This may be due to:

  • changes to mood that worry you or others
  • significant changes to personal hygiene or motivation
  • difficulties concentrating
  • getting confused about what is real and what is not
  • behaviour like laughing or smiling at something others can't see or hear
  • feelings of panic, like something bad is about to happen
  • intense anxiety
  • thoughts or actions of hurting yourself or ending your life
  • thoughts of harming someone else.

The NSW Mental Health Line can help you understand the right service for you or the person you are concerned about.

Health professionals (e.g. psychiatrists, psychologists, GPs, school counsellors), NGO workers and first responders may also contact the NSW Mental Health Line to find out which service might be best for your patient/client and what options are available.

Emergencies

If someone has attempted, or is at immediate risk of attempting to harm themselves or someone else, call Triple Zero (000) immediately.

Frequently asked questions

  1. Calling the Mental Health Line
  2. General information

Calling the Mental Health Line

  • The NSW Mental Health Line is staffed by trained mental health professionals who can:

    • Complete a brief assessment of your situation, which will include asking you questions about how you're feeling and if you have anyone supporting you
    • Suggest ways to help you manage your distress
    • Provide advice about actions to take
    • Make a referral to your local Community Mental Health Service
    • Give you information about other mental health support services in your local area.

    If the mental health professional is concerned about your immediate safety, they may ask you to go to your nearest Emergency Department (ED).  If you can't get to an ED yourself, they may call Emergency Services to take you to the ED.

  • The mental health professional will ask you for your name, contact details, address and date of birth. They will need this information to check if you have a health record. If you don't, they will create a health record for you.

    This information will also help services contact you for an appointment and in case of an emergency.

    The mental health professional will ask you questions about how you are feeling and what is happening for you. Sometimes it can be scary or overwhelming to talk about these things, so take your time and try to give as much information as you can.

    It may feel uncomfortable being asked certain questions, but the mental health professional wants to help you find the services that may assist you.

  • Next steps after you contact the NSW Mental Health Line will depend on your situation. The mental health professional will discuss services within or outside of the public mental health service that may assist you.

    • If you have been referred to the local Community Mental Health team, someone from the team will contact you to arrange an appointment. They may provide you with advice and information about other support options that can help you if you are waiting for an appointment with the team.
    • You may be advised to see your current health provider, like your GP or psychologist.
    • You may be given information about other services in your local area, for example a non-government organisation.
    • If you are immediately unable to keep yourself safe, you may be asked to go to your nearest Emergency Department (ED) or to call Emergency Services on Triple 0 (000).  If you can't get to an ED yourself, the mental health professional may call Emergency Services to take you to the ED.
    • You may need to be admitted to hospital.

  • When you call about another person, the mental health professional will ask you:

    • about your concerns
    • for information about the situation
    • for details of the person you are calling about
    • about your relationship to the person
    • for your details (such as your name, address, contact number)
    • whether the other person is aware you are calling about them

    Where it is appropriate and safe to do so, it is helpful to let the person know that you are calling the Mental Health Line on their behalf.

    If the person is with you, the mental health professional may ask to speak with them directly to understand more about what is going on for them.

  • NSW Health aims to keep your information confidential but there are situations where our staff may have to safely share your information. This will be explained to you on the call.

    Our staff may need to share relevant information so that support, care and treatment can be arranged. This may include sharing information with other health services involved in your care or with other services that can help prevent a life-threatening situation or significant harm from occurring.

    Our staff are legally required to share information with other services in certain situations. This includes when a serious crime like sexual assault, domestic violence or child protection concerns has been disclosed.

    Please refer to the  NSW Health Privacy Leaflet for Patients for more information on how NSW Health is required to protect your health information.  It also explains in which situations NSW Health can legally use and disclose health information.


  • A mental health crisis may include feeling like you can't keep yourself or others safe immediately.

    If you think there is an immediate threat or risk of harm to yourself or others, call Emergency Services on Triple 0 (000).

    If you don't think the situation is immediately unsafe, you can contact the NSW Mental Health Line to speak with a trained mental health professional. They will ask you questions about how you are feeling and discuss services that may assist.

    If the mental health professional is concerned about yours or someone else's immediate safety, they may recommend you contact Emergency Services on Triple 0 (000) or go to your nearest Emergency Department (ED).

  • The NSW Mental Health Line provides a culturally safe service for people who identify as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander.

    You can also call 13YARN (13 92 76).  13YARN is a crisis support line for mob who are feeling overwhelmed or having difficulty coping.  It is a free and confidential service available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week from any mobile or pay phone.  You can talk with an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander Crisis Supporter about your worries or concerns without judgement and in a culturally safe space.  Find out more about 13YARN

  • The NSW Mental Health Line is provided in English.

    If you prefer to speak in another language, you can speak with the mental health professional through the Translating and Interpreting service (TIS National). Please call TIS on 131 450 and ask them to ring the NSW Mental Health line on 1800 011 511.

    You can also prebook an interpreter online using the TIS National Pre booked phone interpreter form.

    You can also contact the Transcultural Mental Health Line (TMHL) on 1800 648 911.  The TMHL is a telephone service to support people who are from culturally and linguistically diverse communities. You can speak with a clinician who understands your culture and can communicate in your language. They can:

    • provide advice on how to improve your wellbeing and mental health
    • help you access mental health services in your community
    • support you to care for someone with a mental health concern.

    Find out more about the TMHL.

  • If you are deaf or have difficulty hearing or speaking, you can talk to a mental health professional through the National Relay Service (NRS) on the below details:

    • TTY (teletypewriter) users phone 133 677 then ask for the NSW Mental Health Line – 1800 011 511
    • Speak and Listen users phone 1300 555 727 then ask for the NSW Mental Health Line – 1800 011 511
    • Internet relay users connect to the NRS by clicking NRS Chat Call then ask for the NSW Mental Health Line – 1800 011 511

    The NRS is a phone/internet solution for people who are deaf or have difficulty hearing or speaking. For more information, see NRS Information.

  • Yes. The NSW Mental Health Line is available to people of all ages.

    If you are looking for a service that offers short-term counselling for children and younger people (aged 5 – 25 years), you may want to contact Kids Helpline.  Kids Helpline offers free, confidential 24/7 online and phone counselling. You can call Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800 or chat Kids Helpline - webchat counselling.

General information

  • Public mental health services are mental health services provided through public hospitals and community mental health services. They are free.

    Public mental health services support people with their mental health recovery to manage self-care, improve social and relationship skills and achieve broader quality of life via physical health, social connectedness, housing, education and employment.

    Public mental health services are available for children and adolescents, adults and older people.

  • The NSW Mental Health Line connects people with a trained mental health professional who will complete a brief mental health assessment and recommend services for appropriate care. This may include referral to a NSW Health public mental health service, where appropriate. 

    The NSW Mental Health Line is not a counselling or one-off crisis support service. However, the mental health professionals can suggest other services that offer this type of support, if this is what is needed.

    Phone and digital mental health services such as Lifeline and Beyond Blue provide access to counsellors or crisis support workers who are trained to provide short-term counselling support.  If this is what you are looking for, you can call:

    • Lifeline on 13 11 14, text on 0477 131 114 or chat.
    • Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636 or chat.
Current as at: Wednesday 17 May 2023
Contact page owner: Mental Health