The Victorian government is making good on its commitment to set up a Royal Commission into Mental Health within 100 days of being re-elected, one of its key pledges at during this year’s election campaign.

But for it to be effective – for it to produce change where other inquiries and efforts have failed in the past – we need it to be as focused and as comprehensive as possible.

And for readers of this column, we need it to truly dig into the specific challenges for rural and regional Victoria – into the particular mental health issues rural and regional Victorians experience and into the distress and disadvantage caused by lack of access to services.

At Mental Health Victoria, we are urging people, services and organisations in rural and regional Victoria to make sure that happens.

In the lead-up to Christmas, many may have missed the communique released by the government calling for feedback on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission. Responses are due by January 27, to meet the government’s promise of a speedy start to the Royal Commission in March.

We are hoping they will hear from all affected and interested people in rural and regional Victoria – from individuals living with mental illness, families and carers, from GPs and health services, from hospitals and emergency departments, from schools and service organisations like Rotary and Lions, from sports clubs, community and faith groups, and all others who have insights to offer or questions and challenges to pose.

Releasing the communique, Mental Health Minister Martin Foley said it was important for the government to hear what everyday Victorians have to say about what topics should be covered by the Royal Commission, to ensure future changes to the mental health system directly reflect what they want and need.

It is asking people and service providers to prioritise themes for the Royal Commission to investigate, including prevention and early intervention, social isolation, depression, anxiety and trauma, accessibility and navigation of the system, integration with alcohol and other drug services, acute and community mental health services, suicide prevention and, critically for rural and regional Victoria, workforce development and retention.

For those wanting to contribute their thoughts, there are many signposts to the issues to be investigated.

That includes a comprehensive report delivered earlier this month by the Senate Community Affairs Reference Committee after its nine-month inquiry into the accessibility and quality of mental health services in rural and remote Australia.

That inquiry was sparked by a landmark Royal Flying Doctor Service report which found that even though Australians living in rural and remote areas are impacted by mental health issues at the same rate as people living in major cities, they experience unique barriers to receiving care. The Senate committee explored those barriers in detail, saying they range from the obvious, such as whether or not there are services and health professionals in an area, to the more subtle, such as the attitudes towards mental health within the community or the effects of social determinants of health like socioeconomic status or employment.

It urged the development of a rural and regional mental health strategy, saying: “In rural and remote communities, the causes of mental illness are often different, the culture of communities is different and the service solutions must therefore be different to those found in urban centres.”

It warns that until there is a strategy that acknowledges the different context of rural and remote communities, mental health service delivery in rural and remote locations will continue to be “a fragmented approach with Band-aid solutions”.

This is where the Royal Commission can truly deliver for rural and regional Victorians. Following in the footsteps of the remarkable Royal Commission into Family Violence, it can provide the pathway to real, deep change across sectors and regions.

But it will be best guided by the experiences and insights from those who live the issues every day, so we urge you to provide feedback to the terms of reference.

Many of us are making new year resolutions right now.

Let’s make one of those priorities being to deliver new resolve and new pathways for mental health in Victoria.

The Victorian government and the yet-to-be appointed commissioners need to hear from rural and regional Victoria.

Victorians can make their submissions on the terms of reference to the Royal Commission into Mental Health online or in writing to the Mental Health Royal Commission Establishment, Department of Premier and Cabinet, GPO Box 4509, Melbourne, 3001.

Angus Clelland is chief executive of Mental Health Victoria.