Health minister orders psychiatric care review

By AINSLEY THOMSON

Health Minister Annette King has ordered an urgent independent review of Auckland's mental healthcare services.

The review will be carried out by the Mental Health Commission and is designed to improve mental healthcare over the medium to long term.

Yesterday, Mrs King said she had also asked the Ministry of Health to work with district health boards to find immediate solutions to acute care problems in Auckland.

Years of under-financing in the northern region had put enormous pressure on acute services, she said.

This pressure intensified three weeks ago when nurses and support staff at the Taharoto unit at North Shore Hospital and Te Atarau unit at Waitakere Hospital took industrial action because of staff shortages that were considered unsafe.

Some patients suffering serious mental disturbances have been held in police cells because of overcrowding in the Auckland acute units.

Last month, an acutely psychotic man was locked in a cell at Henderson police station for 36 hours.

A few days earlier, an acutely disturbed woman had been held in a cell for 24 hours.

Other patients have had to sleep on mattresses in patient interview rooms or have been sent to supervised single rooms in general hospital wards.



Mrs King said the review would look at the complex issues in mental healthcare in Auckland, but would not focus on the short-term acute problems.

"Solutions are about more than funding beds for people," she said.

"They are also about funding and recruiting the best people and services to deliver the right care at the right time."

Mrs King said there would continue to be problems until a full workforce was providing the necessary services.

"And this will not happen overnight."

The chief executive of the Waitemata District Health Board, Dr Dwayne Crombie, said acute care problems in his area needed to be dealt with immediately.

He welcomed the review and hoped it would look at clinical and financial issues.

The Public Service Association, which represents many mental healthcare workers in the Auckland area, also welcomed the review.

But union national secretary Richard Wagstaff said that while medium and long-term solutions to the crisis were important, PSA members were still dealing with immediate problems.

Alleviating the overcrowding in mental healthcare units was critical, he said, and PSA members who recently took industrial action would continue to do so in their efforts to ensure a safe environment for patients and themselves.

The review will be led by Mental Health Commission acting chairman Bob Henare and be undertaken by a small group of experts in health management and clinical practice.

The commission will provide the minister with a report by June 30 and a draft action plan by August 30.