Page 2849 - Week 09 - Wednesday, 17 September 2014
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(2) calls on the ACT Government to:
(a) ensure staff and patient safety at the Adult Mental Health Unit remains a priority; and
(b) report to the Legislative Assembly by no later than the last sitting day in 2014 on measures being pursued by ACT Health to enhance mental health services across the ACT, including the progress of the post occupancy evaluation.”.
Opposition members interjecting—
I listened to Mrs Jones in silence, and I would expect similar courtesy from the opposition benches.
I do believe that, a number of times during Mrs Jones’s address, I was verballed, particularly around her allegation that I basically said, “Well, it is a tough workplace so just accept it.” That is not what I said. I think it does require us to be honest that the workplace is a challenging workplace. However, my comments yesterday also clearly indicated the fact that management need to do whatever it takes to ensure a safe workplace for staff. But I think if there is any suggestion that we will be able to eradicate aggressive or unacceptable behaviour from this workplace, that is a different thing, because I do not think we can, no matter what strategies we put in place. But I never, ever suggested that it was just a tough workplace and therefore nurses just have to put up with it.
The adult mental health unit was commissioned in April 2012. The main role and function of this unit is the provision of safe, voluntary and involuntary admission for people requiring crisis stabilisation of their mental illness or mental disorder. In many ways, Mr Assistant Speaker, it is the intensive care unit of the mental health service system in Canberra.
The services provided include comprehensive assessment, active treatment and support, and provision of opportunities to promote recovery for the individual in the acute phase of their mental illness or mental disorder until that person has progressed to where treatment can be safely and effectively provided in a less restrictive setting such as the general community. The services provided range across the health profession, but the majority of staff are from the nursing profession and are highly skilled and committed members of the ACT health workforce.
In recent years a number of drivers have prompted redesign and redevelopment of health care more generally across ACT Health. These changes have been prompted by various factors, including health care demand projections, national and local reform agenda, and continually evolving evidence relating to best-practice service models. All of this has influenced the decisions the government have taken around our mental health service system, and some of the new facilities that have been put in place include the mental health assessment unit, the adult mental health unit, and a number of community-based services, including the step-up, step-down facilities that are run by the non-government sector in the community.
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