Here we provide answers to common questions about the Institute. If there are any other questions you think should be on this list, please email us.
(Elsewhere on our site are common questions and answers about depression and bipolar disorder and under Q&A for students. )
Winston Churchill, like many members of his family, suffered from intermittent biological depression which was at such a level of severity that he referred to it as his 'black dog'. 'Black' is a colour frequently described by patients who describe severe depression, which come to envelop them like a cloud and often without them feeling that they have any capacity to resist it taking them over.
Winston Churchill is also admired for his incredible resilience during the Second World War and his V for Victory gesture which, together with his inspiring speeches, encouraged the British and the rest of the world to fight on despite adversity. At times when he was severely depressed, he continued to work. Thus, the conjunction of the V for Victory and the black dog represent the capacity for humans to overcome black dog depressions and other shadows on their lives.
Find out more about the meaning of 'black dog' as a descriptor for depression from the winning entries of our 2005 Essay Writing Competition.
The Black Dog Institute's activities are funded:
The Black Dog Institute is an educational, research, clinical and community oriented facility offering specialist expertise in mood disorders - a range of disorders that include depression and bipolar disorder (formerly called 'manic depression'). The Institute is attached to the Prince of Wales Hospital and affiliated with the University of New South Wales .
The Institute's activities include:
The Black Dog Institute officially came into being in February 2002. However, its predecessor organisation, the Mood Disorders Unit, began in 1985 as a clinical research facility offering clinical services at the Prince Henry Hospital located at Little Bay, New South Wales. It was the sole research, treatment and referral service in the NSW public health system for people with depressive disorders. Read more about the history of the Black Dog Institute. [PDF, 30KB]
The Mood Disorders Unit still exists under the overall umbrella of the Black Dog Institute. It is the research arm of the Black Dog Institute; and a program within the Mental Health Program of the Prince of Wales Hospital, Randwick . Consultants contribute to this program and their research is supported by the National Health and Medical Research Council.
As the national depression initiative, beyondblue works with a range of programs and activities aimed at raising community awareness and literacy about depression, preventing depression and encouraging people to seek help. beyondblue also undertakes studies to evaluate the effect of primary prevention and has championed detection and management of depression by general practitioners. Black Dog Institute is more clinically focused, weighted towards improving access and quality of clinical treatments with programs to assist people in receiving an accurate diagnosis, a helpful managment plan, and to be assisted by trained clinicians in the process. The Institute also has a strong and long-standing focus on research into the causes and treatment of depression.
Informal links exist between the two organisations and further linkages are likely to develop over time to promote the overall objectives of both organisations. Importantly, both organisations aim to improve community understanding and clinical management of depression and related disorders
Board members are supporting the Institute for a number of reasons. Some have offered their services on the basis of being aware of the high prevalence of depression and its extremely debilitating and disabling effects, affecting people's functioning within their family and at work. Others have had a family member who has had depression and have found that this has both sensitised them to the impact of depression and encouraged them to wish to do something to help overcome this major public health problem. All were invited on the basis of their expertise. See a list of our board members
Read the policy [PDF, 38KB]
Page last updated: 26- Aug-2009
Depression and Bipolar Disorder Information Australia - Black Dog Institute.
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