❓ Mr. Hatton raises concerns about the treatment of mental health patients in emergency departments. The Minister for Health acknowledges the issue, particularly at Sir Charles Gairdner and Joondalup hospitals, and outlines steps being taken to improve the situation, including legislative changes and the creation of dedicated mental health beds.
AnsweredQoN 66Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
MENTAL HEALTH — HEALTH SYSTEM RESPONSE
66. Mr C.D. HATTON to the
Minister for Health:
I understand mental health patients have special requirements
when they present to emergency departments. Could the minister please outline
to the house how the state's health system is catering for this
vulnerable patient group?
66. Mr C.D. HATTON to the
Minister for Health:
I understand mental health patients have special requirements
when they present to emergency departments. Could the minister please outline
to the house how the state's health system is catering for this
vulnerable patient group?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for the question. It has been a bit of a
difficulty through our hospital system, particularly at some hospitals. The
ones with the most difficulty are probably Sir Charles Gairdner and Joondalup
hospitals, where a large number
of mental health patients occupy beds in the emergency departments and tend to
stay for long periods. There are two reasons for that. One is that there have
not been adequate beds in the hospital for some of the lower level patients who
will be housed there. Also, what we call ''formed'' patients who
are going on to Graylands need coordination between the ambulance service that
takes them there and the police required to escort them. It has been
extraordinarily difficult trying to coordinate those two things and get police and ambulance drivers away
from their normal duties and available to transfer a patient. Sometimes
patients have waited up to 36 hours for that transport. We have been working
very hard to change that. We have had meetings with the Minister for Police.
The Mental Health Bill changes the requirement that formed patients have to be
escorted by the police service. W e are changing the legislation so that we can have special transport officers who
will be specially licensed and able to provide that transport option to escort
those patients to those areas.
Outside that, at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, with the help
of Hawaiian Management Group and one of its directors, Mei Wen, who has made a
considerable donation, we have been able to create an eight-bed ward for
patients with mental illnesses to stay in. One of the critical problems in
emergency departments, particularly for patients with mental illness, is the
noise and the bustle and the people going around; patients come in and
sometimes cry and yell with pain and other issues while they are in a state of
mental difficulty. Firstly, they have to be guarded while they are there to
ensure that they do not become a risk to themselves or others but, secondly,
they need somewhere to stay. Eight beds have been created next to the emergency
department with that financial help. That will allow those patients to be moved
out. While we are waiting for
that legislation to go through, we are able to work with the police and the
Minister for Mental Health to sort out alternative transport arrangements. I am
very hopeful that they will be in place in the near future while we wait for
the legislation to eventually transition the task from police officers to
transport officers. It is still an issue in a lot of our hospitals. Joondalup
in particular does not have sufficient places for patients, but at least we are
working to find a way to change that culture to get better management in our emergency departments.
difficulty through our hospital system, particularly at some hospitals. The
ones with the most difficulty are probably Sir Charles Gairdner and Joondalup
hospitals, where a large number
of mental health patients occupy beds in the emergency departments and tend to
stay for long periods. There are two reasons for that. One is that there have
not been adequate beds in the hospital for some of the lower level patients who
will be housed there. Also, what we call ''formed'' patients who
are going on to Graylands need coordination between the ambulance service that
takes them there and the police required to escort them. It has been
extraordinarily difficult trying to coordinate those two things and get police and ambulance drivers away
from their normal duties and available to transfer a patient. Sometimes
patients have waited up to 36 hours for that transport. We have been working
very hard to change that. We have had meetings with the Minister for Police.
The Mental Health Bill changes the requirement that formed patients have to be
escorted by the police service. W e are changing the legislation so that we can have special transport officers who
will be specially licensed and able to provide that transport option to escort
those patients to those areas.
Outside that, at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, with the help
of Hawaiian Management Group and one of its directors, Mei Wen, who has made a
considerable donation, we have been able to create an eight-bed ward for
patients with mental illnesses to stay in. One of the critical problems in
emergency departments, particularly for patients with mental illness, is the
noise and the bustle and the people going around; patients come in and
sometimes cry and yell with pain and other issues while they are in a state of
mental difficulty. Firstly, they have to be guarded while they are there to
ensure that they do not become a risk to themselves or others but, secondly,
they need somewhere to stay. Eight beds have been created next to the emergency
department with that financial help. That will allow those patients to be moved
out. While we are waiting for
that legislation to go through, we are able to work with the police and the
Minister for Mental Health to sort out alternative transport arrangements. I am
very hopeful that they will be in place in the near future while we wait for
the legislation to eventually transition the task from police officers to
transport officers. It is still an issue in a lot of our hospitals. Joondalup
in particular does not have sufficient places for patients, but at least we are
working to find a way to change that culture to get better management in our emergency departments.
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