Chinese international student Jiaqi He is believed to have died by suicide in Melbourne in August last year.

The 21-year-old was attending one of Australia's most prestigious tertiary education institutions, the University of Melbourne in Parkville.

Key points: The Federal Government has announced $200,000 for a new research project

The Federal Government has announced $200,000 for a new research project The project will look at mental health support and services for international students

The project will look at mental health support and services for international students Orygen, headed up by Professor Patrick McGorry, will undertake the research

Shortly after Jiaqi He's death, her sister sought help from digital neighbourhood watch group SOS-AUS on Chinese social media platform WeChat.

"My sister is a postgraduate student at the University of Melbourne," she wrote.

"This afternoon, I was notified by Melbourne police that my younger sister … has passed away.

"All my family members are feeling very anxious and heartbroken. We hope to please have assistance from your organisation."

SOS-AUS founder Huifeng Liu confirmed he provided help to Jiaqi He's sister and family after receiving that message.

He said family or friends in China often post messages of concern about loved ones in Australia, particularly international students.

Mr Liu acknowledged many organisations in Australia help international students deal with mental health issues, but said more needed to be done.

"I suggest our Government and educational institutes can provide more mental health services for international students," Mr Liu said.

"They have done a good job, but the number of international students is huge.

"We hope there is no more tragedy in Australia."

Huifeng Liu said WeChat group SOS-AUS often receive messages from concerned family about international students. ( ABC News: Jarrod Fankhauser )

Victoria Police confirmed a death in August 2019 in Melbourne's CBD was not being treated as suspicious.

The Victorian Coroner said Jiaqi He's death was the subject of an active investigation.

A University of Melbourne spokesman issued a short statement in response to questions from the ABC.

"As the matter is being investigated by the Coroner, it is inappropriate for the University to comment."

The spokesman said the university provided mental health services for all students, training programs for staff, and wellbeing campaigns that use Chinese social media platforms.

SOS-AUS is a digital neighbourhood watch group on WeChat. ( ABC News: Jarrod Fankhauser )

Federal Government announces new research project

Mr Liu's call for increased services came as the Federal Government pledged more money for international student health.

Federal Education Minister Dan Tehan today announced $200,000 for a new research project to look at mental health support and services for international students, including identifying the challenges in engaging students with services.

"We have a moral duty to ensure the international students who study in Australia are supported to succeed in their studies and that includes support to maintain their mental health," Mr Tehan said.

The most recent figures show Australia hosted 693,750 international students in 2018 with the sector contributing $37.6 billion to the economy and supporting 240,000 jobs.

Mental health not-for-profit organisation and research institute Orygen will run the new research project.

"I definitely think [university mental health services] are in need of a shake-up," said Orygen executive director Professor Patrick McGorry.

"It's not to criticise the people who are already working in that sector … [but] universities … and the Federal Government have created this huge export for Australia which has been beneficial to the country in so many ways.

"But I think there's a duty of care and responsibility to actually make sure the number one health problem of these students is addressed in a much more serious way than currently.

"I think a model of care has to be formulated, which is much more in line with modern youth mental health models than the current tertiary student health system," he said.

Mr Tehan's announcement came after Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said on Thursday the Federal Government would be investing $64 million into suicide prevention work in Australia.

Professor Patrick McGorry said university mental health services are in need of a "shake-up". ( AAP: Alan Porritt )

Mental health services lacking systematic approach

The Centre for Holistic Health, a not-for-profit organisation in Melbourne's outer-east, is on the frontline of providing mental health services to international students.

"Our centre has worked with international students over the past two years, and we run two projects to address the mental health issues of international students from the Chinese-speaking background," said the centre's service coordinator Ada Poon, who speaks fluent Cantonese and Mandarin.

Ada Poon from the Centre for Holistic Health runs mental health first aid training for Chinese students. ( Supplied )

From her experience, Ms Poon said there was a lack of a systematic approach to mental health service provision for international students across Australia.

She said there was a litany of problems with existing services.

For example, many counsellors attempting to help students do not speak the students' first language.

"If [students] … look for support at university … at the wellbeing office, then they may not have enough cultural awareness about what Chinese international students experience," she said.

"Sometimes a student will say that even if they … talk about the issues with them … they find sometimes because of misunderstanding they will feel more sad after [speaking] to counsellors."

'Mental health reform … a slow moving beast'

As international students continue to die by suicide in Australia, the number of deaths across the country each year remains hard to quantify.

In 2019, the Victorian Coroners Prevention Unit released analysis of international student suicide deaths in Victoria.

It found 27 international students died by suicide between 2009 and 2015 in that state alone, but noted the figure was likely to be an underestimation.

The research was done at the request of Victorian coroner Audrey Jamieson, who also called for better strategies to help international students engage with mental health services.

Mental health experts are calling for reforms to mental health services for international students. ( Pexels.com )

Her comments came as she released her findings into the suicide of 24-year-old Chinese national and University of Melbourne student, Zhikai Liu, who died in Melbourne in 2016.

Ms Jamieson made three recommendations in those findings to the Federal Education and Training Department .

A year on, responses to some of her recommendations remain a work in progress.

A Federal Education Department spokesperson told the ABC "a national consultation on international student mental health and safety will commence in 2020 and report to government mid-year".

Professor Patrick McGorry said while progress in responding to calls to change the mental health system can appear slow, there was renewed focus on the sector both in Victoria and nationally.

"It's frustratingly slow, because people are dying every day because of the inadequacies of our mental health system," Professor McGorry said.

"For someone who has spent the last 20 or 30 years trying to create momentum for mental health reform, it's a very slow-moving beast.

"On the other hand, I think the Federal Government is now putting some significant momentum into it, and the state government as well.

"We have a royal commission in Victoria, [and] we have a Productivity Commission [inquiry] nationally."