In June 1993, Macquarie University News introduced Dr Ron Rapee, a new researcher who had recently joined us from the University of Queensland.

In June 2014, Professor Ron Rapee AM is busier than ever, now leading a team of 24 academic members and supporting over 60 research students through the Centre for Emotional Health (CEH), which he founded in 2006.

The CEH has a practicing clinic that conducts approximately 3,500 therapy sessions annually. Clients include children, adults and seniors. It also contributes to programs in schools, hospitals, and within the community, including the current PAVe program, Ageing Wisely, and Study Without Stress.

This month, Ron and his CEH Deputy Director, Professor Jennie Hudson have been working hard to raise awareness of mental health issues. In doing so, they hope to widen accessibility and increase cost-effectiveness of treatment interventions so that all Australians who need support can access it.

They’ve taken the media ‘triple jump’ in recent weeks – with pieces in print (the Daily Telegraph), on the radio (3AW, 2UE and 2SM) and TV (Channel 9’s Weekend Today).

Their work, and that of the whole CEH, sees research findings commonly translated into practical programs for suffers of anxiety disorders, many of which are used around the world, including the Cool Kids program. They are constantly evolving their research to find more effective treatments with better outcomes, as demonstrated in the new Cool Kids Combined trial.

Find out more about the Centre for Emotional Health and get involved today.