Mental health patients waiting more than four days in Emergency Department
Crisis now at unacceptable, untenable level with chronic bed block
Labor will fix crisis, replacing mental health beds and boosting mental ill health services
Will Hodgman cannot continue to deny the crisis in the health system in light of the latest unacceptable situation at the Royal Hobart Hospital.
Shadow Mental Health Minister Sarah Lovell said frontline staff were yet again under indescribable pressure despite their best efforts because of the Liberal’s cuts which saw more than 10 patients suffering mental ill health today unable to proceed to beds.
Ms Lovell said the fact that patients requiring a psychiatric bed had by today been stuck in the ED for up to four days showed the Health Minister had badly failed staff and patients at the same time he and the Premier were prepared to deny the crisis.
“The truth is there’s no question there’s a crisis in the health system in Tasmania despite what the Premier and his Health Minister say,” Ms Lovell said.
“When you have at least one patient waiting in the Emergency Department for a bed for in excess of 110 hours – or more than four days – and others waiting days at a time, the situation for both staff and patients is untenable.
“There are simply not enough beds in the Royal Hobart Hospital and this is due to the cuts made by the Liberal Government.
‘It is unacceptable and it is dangerous for both staff and patients.
“The Liberal Government just cannot be taken seriously when they say they are now going to invest more in health.
“Why didn’t they do that over the last four years?
“Only Labor has a plan to fix the crisis in the health system.
“And only Labor can be believed when we say that we will invest properly and replace the beds that the Liberal Government cut and fund more services for mental ill health because right now – four years after coming to government – the Liberals are still badly letting Tasmanians down.”
Sarah Lovell MLC Shadow Mental Health Minister 28 February 2018
