Legislative Council Thursday 4 June, 2020

Ms FORREST question to LEADER of the GOVERNMENT in the LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL, Mrs HISCUTT -

With regard to acute inpatient mental health care in the North West region, I note the bed capacity at Spencer Clinic has been reduced to promote and support social distancing and COVID-19 safe care.
1 How many inpatient beds are currently available on Spencer Clinic;

2 How are patients being cared for in the community, who would otherwise have been admitted being provided appropriate care; and,

3 If all allocated beds are taken at Spencer Clinic and a patient in urgent need of admission presents, how is this patient managed?

Answers:

1 During the COVID-19 pandemic there has been 12 inpatient beds available at the Spencer Clinic. This has ensured that the Clinic is able to meet the infection control requirements of the North West Regional Hospital to provide separate zones for COVID and non COVID patients.

2 There are currently no consumers waiting in the community who require admission to Spencer Clinic. There are beds available on Spencer Clinic for consumers who require admission.
All consumers are continuing to be seen by the Crisis Assessment and Triage Team (CATT) and case management throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and CATT have increased their capacity in the community to provide more intensive mental health care to those who require such a service.
The Adult Community Mental Health Service in the North West has provided the North West Regional Hospital Emergency Department with a Nurse to ensure all mental health presentations to the North West Regional Hospital are seen promptly and provided with appropriate mental health care.

3 If the inpatient beds available at the Spencer Clinic are full, the Service follows the same processes as prior to the pandemic, which includes reviewing the current inpatients, identifying those that are able to be discharged.
If the Spencer Clinic is unable to allocate a bed, contact is made with inpatient units in other regions, seeking admission. If an out of region bed is available, the patient is transported to that facility. Spencer Clinic then continues to review patients for discharge, and once a bed becomes available, the North West patient in the out of area unit is transferred back to Spencer Clinic.