Department of Health

Self-assessment tool for psychological distress

If you or someone else is in crisis or needs urgent help

Find out more about how to get help.

The information you provide when you complete this self-assessment tool is confidential. Your responses are not stored or monitored.

If you have experienced an incidence of occupational violence and aggression (OVA) you may find that the incident continues to affect how you feel over a period of time.

This simple 10-question online tool1 measures your psychological distress by asking questions about how you’ve been feeling over the past four weeks or since the incident occurred.

Your score will place you in the low, moderate, high or very high range of psychological distress, and we will provide you with information and contacts so that you can seek support.

This tool does not provide a diagnosis. Only a qualified health professional can make a diagnosis.

You can print your results for your own records, or to share them with your general practitioner (GP, or doctor) or mental health professional.

Further information

  • 1 This tool is based on the tool developed by Professor Ronald C Kessler, Department of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School who is thanked for the use of research on the K10 funded by US Public Health Service Grants RO1 MH46376, R01 MH52861, RO1 MH49098, and K05 MH00507 and by the John D and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation Network on Successful Midlife Development (Gilbert Brim, Director).

Reviewed 26 October 2021

Health.vic

In this topic

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  • Information for managers
    Information and advice for health service managers and leaders on supporting staff and colleagues after OVA, including an online learning module, self-assessment tool, detailed guide, common…
  • Information for staff
    Information for health service staff about common reactions to OVA, Psychological First Aid, speaking with others and self-care. Includes a tool to assess psychological distress.
  • Common reactions to OVA
    A summary of common short and long-term psychological, emotional and physical reactions to OVA.
  • Self-assessment tool
    A simple 10-question online tool to measure psychological distress.
  • Getting help
    Information about services and support you can access after an incident of OVA.
  • Ten tips for coping after OVA
    Helpful tips for coping after an incident of OVA.
  • Taking care of yourself after OVA
    Strategies to help you recover and cope with distress, including helpful self-talk, controlled breathing, planning positive activities and staying connected.

More about trauma - reaction and recovery

Contact details

Worker Wellbeing Department of Health

50 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne, VIC 3000
whwb@health.vic.gov.au
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