With fresh talk of the different roles needed for an effective mental health strategy in the Port Stephens area, the Lifting the Lid on Mental Illness forum couldn't have come at a better time for the coastal community.

Open to the public, the free event being held at Wests Nelson Bay Diggers aims to spark conversation about mental illness with a view to better the services available to patients in the area.

To address the issues of mental health, the forum will include presentations from internationally renowned academics Professor Helen Christensen, Chief Scientist and Director of the Black Dog Institute, and Professor Cyndi Weickert, Chair of Schizophrenia Research at NeuRA.

The audience will then be given the chance to openly ask questions to a panel including Professor Christensen and Professor Weickert who are joined by local GP Tony Plummer, Tomaree Clinic mental health nurse Charmaine Foster, schizophrenia research advocate Richard Schweizer and PHN mental health services manager Leigh Philpott.

Well-known radio broadcaster and motivational speaker Craig Hamilton will bring his own lived experience of mental illness to the event as moderator.

The forum is completely free and will be open from 5.30pm at Wests Nelson Bay Diggers, Nelson Bay on Thursday 4 May, 2017.

The Black Dog Institute runs free mental health presentations all around Australia. Head here to find out more and request a presentation.