Women’s mental health beds reduced to accommodate elderly patients as part of WA government winter flu strategy
The Cook government’s winter health strategy will see the number of women’s mental health beds at Cockburn Health reduced by a third as they are diverted to older patients.
The residential mental health facility near Cockburn Central has 75 beds and the changes will see 25 of the beds used for older women waiting to be cared for in the hospital system.
A manager lamented the loss of mental health beds in a March 11 leaked email to workers from the South Metro Healthcare mental health unit.
“A ministerial decision has been taken to change the use of the top floor at Cockburn from women’s mental health to the care of women awaiting placement,” the email said.
“While the loss of 25 existing women’s mental health beds is regrettable, 50 dedicated beds remain and the demand/need for them is recognised.”
The letter attributes the decision to the “winter bed strategy”, which forms part of the Western Australian government’s recently announced winter flu strategy.
The Cockburn facility is the largest women-only mental health facility in the state.
state A three-year deal has been signed to lease the facility previously operated by Bethesda after announcing it would shut down the service.
The decision so alarmed senior clinicians and staff at South Metro Health Service that 46 staff put their names to a letter sent to WA Chief Health Officer General Shirley Bowen the day before the strategy was made public on February 24, raising concerns about the removal of large numbers of women’s mental health beds from the system.
In that letter, which was also leaked to the opposition, clinicians warned that the move would harm the flow of beds in the system, given the 94 percent occupancy rate of women’s mental health beds.
The letter said, “When this capability narrows, complexity does not decrease; it shifts elsewhere.”
The letter also warned that women may be at risk of gender-based violence in the hospital system.
“The loss of women’s mental health beds in WA’s only inpatient mental health unit for women will result in an increased number of female patients treated in mixed-gender units, with a corresponding impact on their physical, sexual and emotional safety,” the report said.
The $140 million winter health strategy involves injecting 200 additional beds into the system through a variety of methods, including the purchase of dedicated bed capacity.
Opposition health spokeswoman Libby Mettam said the leaks showed the state was “robbed Peter to pay Paul”.
“In a state as wealthy as Western Australia, we should not be pushing one group of vulnerable patients aside to treat another,” he said.
But in parliament on Tuesday, Health Minister Meredith Hammat said mental health services had not been closed.
“We make no apologies that our focus is on opening every available bed,” he said.
“We want to make sure that the capacity we have in the system matches the demand.”
Tuesday’s disclosures were the second tranche of leaked letters in as many weeks.
Last week the opposition seized a leaked letter from Michael Levitt, medical co-director of surgical services at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, to staff, revealing internal concerns about the carrying out of elective surgeries. Will be significantly affected by the government’s winter flu strategy.
In the letter, Levitt said two operating rooms at the hospital will close effective April 7 and remain closed permanently as a new hospital theater is expanded in the area.
Levitt said the hospital’s entire leadership was “deeply disappointed that this strategy disproportionately affects patients needing complex surgeries.”
A Department of Health spokesman disputed claims that movie theaters would close permanently, saying they would only be closed for two weeks in April for routine maintenance to replace floor coverings.
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Hamish Hastie is WAtoday’s state political correspondent and the winner of five WA Media Awards, including the 2023 Beck Award for best political journalism.Connect with: X or email.
