Mental health patient 'sedated' and waiting for days in emergency department
A Queensland GP says one of his patients was sedated in an emergency department while waiting several days for a bed in a mental health ward to become available.
It follows calls by the Nurses' Professional Association of Queensland for an independent investigation into performance reporting data in emergency departments.
In a June survey, nurses from Rockhampton and Gladstone hospitals claimed they were being pressured to manipulate data and raised concerns about the increasing use of sedation on mental health patients.
Boyne Island doctor Gaston Boulanger said his patient was taken by ambulance to the Gladstone Hospital because of his psychosis.
"That's very frightening, very, very troubling for a patient like that. It's not good for their ongoing mental health."
Despite a population of approximately 63, 000 in the Gladstone region, there are no inpatient mental health beds at the Gladstone Hospital.
The Central Queensland Hospital and Health Service acknowledged its emergency departments (ED) were dealing with high demand.
"I am concerned that allegations have been made that ED data has been misrepresented, and I certainly do not endorse incorrect reporting of data in any instance," chief executive Lisa Blackler said.
She also refuted claims that mental health patients were being sedated while waiting for a bed, and said sedation was only used when a patient's behaviour risked themselves, patients or staff.
Nurses' Professional Association of Queensland President Kara Thomas said the union recently surveyed nearly 100 members in Gladstone and Rockhampton.
She said the survey showed nurses were being pressured to move emergency department patients into overflow short-stay units to avoid performance breaches.
"Almost 100 per cent [of respondents] say patients are waiting more than 12 hours in ED frequently to daily, with mental health patients sometimes waiting up to seven days or more for admission, often sedated in non-designated areas," Ms Thomas said.
She also said nurses were treating patients in areas like hallways, because there were no beds available.
A spokesperson for Health Minister Tim Nicholls said he was aware of the union's concerns and the government had allocated $33 billion for health in the state budget to improve the state's health and hospital services.
Ms Thomas said an independent audit into performance reporting data was necessary to understand how to fix the issue.
"Someone is going to die, potentially, and this needs to be actioned."
Ms Blackler said the hospital recognised EDs were not suitable for long-term care and the service is committed to reducing the number of patients spending more than 24 hours in the ED.
She said, while there was longer term planning underway, they had utilised other spaces at both Rockhampton and Gladstone to expand ED beds.
There are 23 mental health beds at the Rockhampton Hospital, which services central and central-west Queensland — a population of more than 200,000.
Dr Boulanger said the Gladstone Hospital desperately needed its services upgraded, including inpatient mental health beds.
The mental health unit in Rockhampton is undergoing a $92 million expansion to increase the number of beds to 32.
It is due to be complete in 2026.
Gladstone has a step-up and step-down mental health facility, which provides a 24-hour residential service for adults needing sub-acute mental health services.
But Dr Gaston said many people were too ill for that level of treatment.
For several years he has also called on the health service to build an ICU at the Gladstone Hospital.
He said it would attract specialists which would improve health outcomes, including in the emergency department.
"For instance, if you have patient who needs to see a cardiologist in Gladstone, the only way is to go to another facility because Gladstone doesn't have a cardiologist," Dr Boulanger said.
"In any other hospital, the cardiologist will come to the ED… they treat the patient, and the patient can go home."
The health service said the region was well serviced by the ICU in Rockhampton, but it is continually monitoring demand.
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