❓ Question regarding the planning and provision of specialist mental health inpatient beds in regional WA, specifically the Midwest, and other regions post-2020. The Minister provides information on planning processes and availability of existing services.
AnsweredQoN 43Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
MENTAL
HEALTH UNIT — MIDWEST REGION
43. Hon MATT BENSON-LIDHOLM to the Minister for Mental
Health:
I refer to recent advice provided by the Minister for Mental
Health in the Legislative Assembly grievance debate on 9 May 2013 that work has
been done showing that a specialist mental health inpatient unit of up to 40
beds is required for the midwest region by 2020–21.
(1) When and by whom was this work done?
(2) Are the details of this work publicly available?
(3) If yes to (2), where can it be found; and, if not, why
not?
(4) Has
similar planning been done to assess the requirements for specialist mental
health inpatient beds in Bunbury, Albany, Kalgoorlie and Broome post-2020?
(5) Will the minister table any advice she has in this
regard; and, if not, why not?
HEALTH UNIT — MIDWEST REGION
43. Hon MATT BENSON-LIDHOLM to the Minister for Mental
Health:
I refer to recent advice provided by the Minister for Mental
Health in the Legislative Assembly grievance debate on 9 May 2013 that work has
been done showing that a specialist mental health inpatient unit of up to 40
beds is required for the midwest region by 2020–21.
(1) When and by whom was this work done?
(2) Are the details of this work publicly available?
(3) If yes to (2), where can it be found; and, if not, why
not?
(4) Has
similar planning been done to assess the requirements for specialist mental
health inpatient beds in Bunbury, Albany, Kalgoorlie and Broome post-2020?
(5) Will the minister table any advice she has in this
regard; and, if not, why not?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for some notice of this question.
(1)–(3)
The forecasting for an inpatient mental health facility was completed in
January 2013 by the WA Country Health Service. It was done to inform both
future planning needs and also budget submissions. Geraldton, in the midwest
region, is the only regional centre that does not have access to an inpatient
mental health service at the moment. Given that the Broome facility was built
to accommodate both the Pilbara and Kimberley services, we have made
commitments to build a step-down facility in the Pilbara area. All the other
regions have specialist and authorised mental health beds. The situation in
Geraldton is a little unique. As a result of that, the staff who work with the
WA Country Health Service up there have developed one of the best capacities of
managing people with acute mental illness in the community. I commend the work
of the staff who work for the community mental health service and the WA
Country Health Service in the midwest region. They do an absolutely fantastic
job.
(4) The future
mental health inpatient bed requirements for public hospitals are outlined in
the ''WA Health Clinical Services Framework 2010–2020'',
which is publicly available. The clinical services framework is reviewed
regularly, and is next due for review later in 2013, after September, when the
new Australian Bureau of Statistics population figures are available.
(5) Given that this advice was taken for a budget submission,
the answer to that question is no.
(1)–(3)
The forecasting for an inpatient mental health facility was completed in
January 2013 by the WA Country Health Service. It was done to inform both
future planning needs and also budget submissions. Geraldton, in the midwest
region, is the only regional centre that does not have access to an inpatient
mental health service at the moment. Given that the Broome facility was built
to accommodate both the Pilbara and Kimberley services, we have made
commitments to build a step-down facility in the Pilbara area. All the other
regions have specialist and authorised mental health beds. The situation in
Geraldton is a little unique. As a result of that, the staff who work with the
WA Country Health Service up there have developed one of the best capacities of
managing people with acute mental illness in the community. I commend the work
of the staff who work for the community mental health service and the WA
Country Health Service in the midwest region. They do an absolutely fantastic
job.
(4) The future
mental health inpatient bed requirements for public hospitals are outlined in
the ''WA Health Clinical Services Framework 2010–2020'',
which is publicly available. The clinical services framework is reviewed
regularly, and is next due for review later in 2013, after September, when the
new Australian Bureau of Statistics population figures are available.
(5) Given that this advice was taken for a budget submission,
the answer to that question is no.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.