¹Deakin University, Institute for Mental and Physical Health and Clinical Translation (IMPACT), Geelong, Australia, ²Swinburne University of Technology, Centre for Mental Health and Brain Sciences, Melbourne, Australia, ³Australian National University, Centre for Mental Health Research, Canberra, Australia, ⁴University of Adelaide, Discipline of Psychiatry, Adelaide, Australia, ⁵MAGNET, Independent Representative, Geelong, Australia, ⁶First Nations Co, Founder, Brisbane, Australia, ⁷The University of Melbourne, Department of Psychiatry, Melbourne, Australia, ⁸The University of Sydney, Brain Dynamics Centre, Sydney, Australia, ⁹The University of Western Australia, UWA Medical School, Perth, Australia, ¹⁰The University of Melbourne, Department of General Practice and Primary Care, Melbourne, Australia, ¹¹Orygen and Centre for Youth Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia, ¹²Bipolar Australia, Chief Executive Officer, Sydney, Australia, ¹³Monash University, SPHPM Health Economics Group, Melbourne, Australia, ¹⁴The University of Sydney, The Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use, Sydney, Australia, ¹⁵University of New South Wales, The George Institute, Sydney, Australia, ¹⁶The Black Dog Institute, First Nations Strategy and Partnerships, Sydney, Australia, ¹⁷The University of Queensland, Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences, Brisbane, Australia, ¹⁸Monash University, Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Melbourne, Australia

Background: Mental Health Australia General Clinical Trials Network (MAGNET) is the first network in Australia dedicated to clinical trials in adult mental health, aiming to advance prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and recovery. Funded through the 2020 Million Minds Mission grant by the Australian Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF), MAGNET’s goal is to facilitate large-scale, coordinated clinical trials at both national and international levels. By fostering collaboration, MAGNET seeks to drive transformative mental health research, addressing critical unmet needs and answering complex questions that require the scale and expertise of a unified network.

Aims & Objectives: MAGNET's overarching vision is to be a leading network internationally for high-quality mental health clinical trials that serve community needs. MAGNET’s mission is to unify and improve adult mental health clinical trial research and translation in Australia. MAGNET aims to create a reusable, sustainable and shared infrastructure to strengthen the capacity, quality, effectiveness, and translation of mental health clinical trials (CTs).

Method: MAGNET is a collaboration between over 50+ Australian institutions and 600+ leading researchers, clinicians, and lived experience research partners in mental health aiming to improve the quality, capacity, reach and translation of clinical trials.

Results: In collaboration with the mental health community, MAGNET has established seven platform resources designed to enhance the quality and capacity of clinical trials.


MAGNET also supports four signature trials, leveraging these platforms to provide essential resources and expertise for trial design and implementation while minimising duplication.

MAGNET has established a trial endorsement process to support transformative mental health research, targeting critical gaps and unresolved questions at both national and international levels. At the core of MAGNET’s governance are Lived Experience Research Partners, First Nations collaborators, researchers, and clinicians, whose active involvement is essential across all aspects of the network. Through strategic planning, MAGNET is committed to ensuring that clinical trials drive significant progress in prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and recovery worldwide.

Discussion & Conclusions: MAGNET is dedicated to enabling scalable, high-quality, and translatable mental health clinical trials that meet community needs. The network warmly invites national and international researchers and partners to collaborate in the development of mental health clinical trials.