Page 3653 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 20 October 1993
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QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE
Mental Health Services
MRS CARNELL: My question is addressed to the Minister for Health. I refer the Minister to a letter written by Dr Bernie Hughson, the former Executive Director of Mental Health Services, to Ms Gillian Biscoe on 10 March 1993. It states:
The ACT Government provides one of the lowest per capita budgets for Mental Health Services of any area in the country. There are fewer beds available than elsewhere, and, as a result, we have more admissions per bed, shorter lengths of stay and fewer staff per admission than comparable cities ... There are no elective psychiatric admissions to Woden Valley Hospital and patients are not infrequently discharged earlier than best practice would require because more urgent cases must be admitted.
Taking into account that this is Mental Health Week, what has the Minister done to address the chronic bed shortage; and does he agree with Dr Hughson that more beds are required in the psychiatric ward?
MR BERRY: No, Dr Hughson did not say that. He said that we have a lower number of beds. Do not tell the big one about what he said.
Mrs Carnell: That is what he said. I quoted him exactly.
MR BERRY: No. He said that we have the lowest number of beds. He did not say that we had to have - - -
Mr Humphries: Yes, we need more.
MR BERRY: No, he did not say that we need more.
Mrs Carnell: I can actually table the document where he did.
MR BERRY: Go on. Undoubtedly, since Labor has come to office we have done more in relation to the provision of mental health services than was previously the case. I will just go through some of the services that we have provided. Mental Health Services has provided a daily crisis service from the - - -
Mr Humphries: We established that.
MR BERRY: Wait a minute. You interrupt again. You want to consider just part of the picture, not the whole picture, because the whole picture is good news.
Mrs Carnell: I asked about beds.
MR BERRY: That is right. Beds are a small part of the entire - - -
Mrs Carnell: That is the question.
MR BERRY: You are going to get a big picture answer, whether you like it or not.
Mrs Carnell: You mean that you are not going to answer the question.
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