Now, more than 20 years later, he said demand on mental health services and the need for more community GPs had never been greater.

Dr Cerchez finished up at Headspace's Launceston office last week, leaving a big hole in an organisation he described as "invaluable".

Having spent two decades working with vulnerable youth, he said there had been a significant increase in adolescent anxiety - something he attributes largely to the pressures of social media.

"When I first started at the Corner Youth Health Service all those years ago, social media and video gaming was not the problem it is today," he said.

"The subtle effects of being online and the need to be liked has now been shown to cause changes in adolescent brain development, leading to behaviours which can be difficult to deal with - social anxiety and other dysfunctional thought processes and erratic behaviour.

"A lot of people want to put a label on what they've got, but that puts you in a certain box.

"Once you are there it can be hard to escape from that box. So we try very hard with people, not to label them."

Headspace provides counselling and support services for youth aged between 12 and 25.

Dr Cerchez said through his role as a general practitioner he saw an interesting cross-section of young people ranging from the homeless, the unemployed, to students from public and private schools as well as university.

He also came across a variety of health problems, but said for everything early intervention and prevention remained the most important remedy.

"People ending up in emergency departments - it's wrong. We can stop them before they get there," he said.

"If only governments would put money towards early intervention, then they wouldn't have to throw so much at the end of the line.

"Quite often in the early stages of uncertainty in mental illness, it's possible to reverse it, as opposed to when it's been happening for a long time.

"The adolescent brain is still forming, so you have a chance to re-program it. That's the analogy I use with the kids.

"You are not hardwired badly, it's just the software that's running badly. And you can always change software."

While moving on from his role at Headspace, Dr Cerchez will continue working in the health space - including his role as interim chief executive of General Practice Training Tasmania.

He said many GPs were intimated about working in the mental health space, with issues around attracting young doctors who wanted to work in Tasmania.

"Headspace is really overwhelmed at the moment, for counselling and the other issue general practice," he said.

"We want to encourage young doctors to come here and work, because it can be a great balance to their general practice.

"I think there is a bit of a fear out there about the mental health side of things. But really it's a lot easier than general practice, because you have all that support and people who can help you.

"There is a very positive culture and commitment at the Launceston Headspace.

"I would recommend it to any GP, as the work is very much all about early intervention and preventive health. I shall miss it."

Dr Cerchez said one of the greatest rewards from his role was the connections he formed with his patients.

"The youth relate well to me. Sometimes they haven't had older people to deal with, who can give them advice and quite often that's useful," he said.

"To have someone who is like a father figure, to help them. It's been good to be able to fill that role. It's been very rewarding."