Hobart Psychology Clinics Aim to Ease Bed Shortages
What Is Going On in Hobart Hospitals?
The Royal Hobart Hospital (RHH) is experiencing constant bed shortages, and the problem continues to intensify. According to the Tasmanian Times, lifesaving surgeries are being cancelled, people are being turned away due to overcrowding, and the emergency department is inundated every day with patients that can’t get proper treatment. With the lack of beds or funding to support demand, patients are left without an alternative.
With southern Tasmania's growing population, the obvious solution to this issue is increased government funding. However, little action is being taken from a government and union level. So, local psychology clinics, Clarity Health Care and Psychology South and Wellbeing Services, are taking action by aiming to keep mental health patients out of hospitals altogether. How? By partnering together and offering a creative, evidence-based, multidisciplinary, specialised solution to reducing psychiatric patient readmission.
What is Clarity Health Care and Psychology South Doing?
Clarity Health Care and Psychology South are alternatives to hospital treatment, seeking to create a lasting impact on patients with mental illness. Across a patient’s mental health care plan, they are treated by a single team at a single location, along with Zoom and Telehealth care. These multidisciplinary clinics are simplifying access to mental health care to reduce pressure on hospitals – and it is actually working.
Clarity Health Care is already seeing a 90% reduction in hospital readmissions. Just imagine the impact of these results on mental health patients across Hobart.
Why Start the Solution with Mental Health?
Mental health patients tend to stay longer in hospital due to how complex and sensitive their condition can be. The Australian Medical Association has recognised trends in recent years of “growing wait times, decreased capacity and increase in severity of illness for those presenting to [emergency department].” Through approaches like those from Clarity, it fills the gap in funding for fit-for-purpose care and preventative care –rerouting mental health patients away from generalised hospital care.
In Tasmania, patients are waiting in emergency departments for up to 28 hours for admission into a mental health unit. These are shocking numbers, which can further impact mental health negatively due to a distressing wait in a loud, high energy and bright environment. On the other hand, nurses and medical staff that are not specially trained to care for patients with severe mental illnesses are becoming burnt out. Clarity’s psychologists in Hobart offer what these patients need – safe and comfortable care, away from possible retraumatisation.
The Way Forward
Sometimes, a hospital is not always the first or best option for those experiencing poor mental health. Clarity Health and Psychology South offer ADHD and psychological assessments in Hobart. They recognise that certain conditions are not straightforward and use a comprehensive assessment that leads to comprehensive care and support.
So, the way forward? Rerouting mental health patients away from hospitals, leading to reduced hospital pressure and lasting and effective mental health care. Turn to the psychologists in Kingston and Hobart doing amazing work.
