Australia is now the global leader in psychedelic-assisted therapies. These treatments are helping heal many patients who have not responded to conventional treatments. Australia is experiencing an epidemic of depression, anxiety, PTSD and suicide, which is placing growing pressure on families, workplaces and the health system. Australia’s leadership in the controlled use of psilocybin and MDMA-assisted therapy in clinical environments is inspiring multiple other nations. Expect to see big announcements over the coming months in this rapidly emerging field.
In recent years, psychedelic-assisted therapies have emerged as one of the most promising approaches for individuals living with treatment-resistant mental health conditions including depression, trauma (PTSD), addictions, eating disorders, OCD, end-of-life stress and more. Australia has become a key player in this evolving field, particularly following the landmark regulatory decision in early 2023. That year, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) rescheduled psilocybin and MDMA as Schedule 8 medicines, allowing their limited use in treating certain mental illnesses in clinical environments. This change followed applications submitted by Mind Medicine Australia (MMA). It marked a world-first in regulatory recognition of these substances for therapeutic use.
Mind Medicine Australia is a registered charity founded by award-winning social entrepreneurs and philanthropists, Tania de Jong AM and Peter Hunt AM. MMA’s mission is to alleviate the suffering and suicides caused by mental illness by expanding treatment options through the safe, clinical use of psychedelic-assisted therapies to treat depression, trauma, addictions and other intractable conditions. MMA’s wholly clinical focus includes building a national ecosystem for the use of these transformational treatments in Australia, through world-leading training and professional development programs, education and awareness building, affordable medicine supplies, development of clinics and funding of innovative research and a world-first National Registry to collate real world evidence at Australian National University. Through MMA’s work the Australian Government also invested AU15 million dollars for further research and trials in this rapidly emerging field. This is the largest grant awarded to this rapidly emerging field from any government.
Since then, over 120 Authorised Psychiatrists in Australia have begun offering these therapies under the TGA’s Authorised Prescriber scheme. As of September 2026, more than 400+ patients have received psychedelic-assisted therapy in regulated clinical settings—marking a significant turning point in mental healthcare delivery. The outcomes have been extraordinary with many patients reporting that this was “life-saving” and that now their children have their parents back. Everyone deserves the chance to have access to safe and effective medicines and lead a meaningful and joyful life.
Why Alternative Therapies Are Being Explored
Current mental health treatments are not effective for the majority of patients and carry significant side effects for many. In Australia, one in four people are suffering with mental illness, and only about 10-15% of those experience remission through conventional approaches such as antidepressants or talk therapy. For individuals with treatment-resistant depression or PTSD, this can mean years of ongoing symptoms and suffering with few alternatives. This places an enormous burden on families, workplaces, the community and a huge financial burden on governments.
Psychedelic-assisted therapies are exciting new treatment options because of remission results ranging from 60-80% across hundreds of global trials. These results are being witnessed after two to three dosing sessions with either MDMA for trauma or psilocybin for depression alongside a three to four month course of psychotherapy. Rather than solely addressing symptoms, these therapies aim to support deeper psychological processing through a structured therapeutic process that includes professional guidance and preparation.
What Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy Involves
Psychedelic-assisted therapy typically combines the administration of a psychedelic substance—such as psilocybin, MDMA, or ketamine—with a multi-phase therapeutic process:
Participants are screened carefully, and sessions are delivered with support from trained professionals to ensure safety and therapeutic value.
Each substance works differently: for example, psilocybin has been associated with increased neuroplasticity and emotional openness, while MDMA reduces fear responses (fight, flight, freeze) and supports trauma-focused work with experienced clinicians trained in altered-states work. Ketamine, already used in psychiatry, can have rapid-acting antidepressant effects in some individuals.
Neuroimaging studies have also shown that psychedelics can temporarily alter patterns of brain activity associated with rigid thinking, while enhancing communication between brain regions—potentially contributing to psychological flexibility and new insights.
Training for the Future of Mental Healthcare
As the field grows, appropriate training for healthcare professionals has become increasingly important. As a charity, MMA is focused on ensuring that there are enough qualified professionals delivering these treatments in communities around the nation, so that no patient is disadvantaged due to their geographic or financial circumstances.
The Certificate in Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies (CPAT)™ by Mind Medicine Australia is considered the leading training in the world and attracts therapists and clinicians globally. The curriculum is designed to provide registered clinicians—such as psychiatrists, psychologists, psychotherapists, counsellors, GPs, nurses, social workers and allied health professionals—with a foundation in the theory and practice of psychedelic-assisted therapy.
The training combines online learning with in-person components and is delivered by an international Faculty of leading clinicians and researchers. It covers the clinical application of psilocybin, MDMA, and ketamine-assisted therapy, with attention to ethics, trauma-informed care, and best practices for safety and integration. By the end of 2025, the program is expected to have trained over 750 professionals across Australia. The majority describe the training as life-changing and the best professional development they have ever undertaken. See more at: https://cpat.mindmedicineaustralia.org.au/
Programs like CPAT aim to prepare mental health professionals to work safely within the current regulatory environment and to support multidisciplinary models of care, where the patient is truly in the centre of the healing process.
Considerations for the Future
The reintroduction of psychedelic-assisted therapies into clinical settings brings with it a range of ethical, regulatory, access and professional questions. There is also the question of cost. It’s inspiring to see Medibank Private, our largest health insurer, leading the way, alongside the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) and the NDIS. MMA’s Patient Support Fund supports up to 50% of the upfront costs of treatment for patients in need including First Responders, Veterans and single mothers.
As the field develops, significant real-world data collection, research, training, and careful oversight will be essential to ensure these therapies are delivered responsibly to patients suffering immensely from intractable conditions.
With the support of frameworks like the TGA’s Authorised Prescriber scheme and professional training programs such as CPAT, Australia is leading a new chapter in mental healthcare—one that is shaped by both scientific inquiry and clinical need.
Please find a summary of MMA’s achievements over the last seven years here: https://mindmedicineaustralia.org.au/seven-years-of-transforming-mental-health-in-australia/
Important links:
MMA website: http://mindmedicineaustralia.org.au/
MMA CPAT Training Program: https://cpat.mindmedicineaustralia.org.au/
Mind Medicine Australia Clinic: https://mindmedclinic.com.au/
MMA Patient Support Fund: https://mindmedicineaustralia.org.au/donate/
Please contact Tania de Jong AM or Peter Hunt AM for all enquiries:
[email protected]
[email protected]
MMA Head Office: +61 3 8679 6015
LL.B (Hons), GradDipMus
Tania de Jong AM is the co-Founder and Executive Director of Mind Medicine Australia. Tania has garnered an international reputation as an award-winning social entrepreneur, acclaimed soprano, inspirational speaker and storyteller, creative alchemist, philanthropist and spiritual journey woman. She is a passionate leader for social change. Her mission is to change the world, one voice at a time!
She regularly presents on creativity, innovation, leadership, purpose, psychedelic-assisted therapies, mental health and wellbeing at major conferences and events around the world across the business, government, creative arts and community sectors. Tania is one of Australia’s most successful female entrepreneurs and innovators developing 6 businesses and 4 charities including Creative Universe, Creativity Australia and the With One Voice programs, Umbrella Foundation, Creative Innovation Global, Pot-Pourri and The Song Room.
Tania was named in the 100 Women of Influence, the 100 Australian Most Influential Entrepreneurs and named as one of the 100 most influential people in psychedelics globally. Her TED Talk has sparked global interest.
B.Com, LL.B
As an investment banker Peter Hunt AM advised local and multi-national companies and governments in Australia for nearly 35 years. He co-founded one of Australia’s leading investment banking advisory firms, Caliburn Partnership and was Executive Chairman of Greenhill Australia. Peter was a member of the Advisory Panel of ASIC and chaired the Vincent Fairfax Family Office.
Peter is an active philanthropist involved in funding, developing and scaling social sector organisations which seek to create a better and fairer world. He is Chairman of Mind Medicine Australia which he established with his wife, Tania de Jong, in 2018. He regularly presents to Governments, regulators, clinicians, philanthropists and the general public on psychedelic-assisted therapies and the legal and ethical frameworks needed to ensure these treatments can be made accessible and affordable. He was the lead author of Mind Medicine Australia’s successful rescheduling applications for MDMA and psilocybin, which made Australia the first country in the world to reschedule these medicines.
He founded Women’s Community Shelters in 2011. Peter is a Director of The Umbrella Foundation. Peter also acts as a pro bono adviser to Creativity Australia. He was formerly Chairman of So They Can, Grameen Australia and Grameen Australia Philippines.
Peter was made a member of the General Division of the Order of Australia in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List in 2010 for services to the philanthropic sector.
