Plans for a $460m integrated mental health facility in Sydney’s west have been welcomed as a step in the right direction in addressing the “enormous” need for better and fairer care across the state.
But the Australian Medical Association New South Wales head, Dr Danielle McMullen, said the “million-dollar question” was how the complex at Westmead would be staffed, amid ongoing issues of doctor and nurse furloughing and burnout.
The state’s premier, Dominic Perrottet, on Monday announced that the new facility would be built in western Sydney and would begin serving the region’s growing population from 2026.
“This development will ensure our diverse communities have access to world-class mental healthcare” Perrottet said.
The centre will eventually replace the “outdated” mental health facilities at Cumberland hospital and will have an acute assessment unit and beds, sub and non-acute mental health beds, outpatient services and education.
The health minister, Brad Hazzard, said the facility would benefit people living with multiple health conditions by bringing services together.
“Co-location of mental health services with Westmead hospital will maximise the opportunities for mental health teams to work alongside other health teams to ensure timely assessment and care planning,” Hazzard said.
McMullen welcomed the multipronged approach outlined by the government and said it would go some way in closing the “really big” gap between public and private care, with more action needed in the meantime.
“The need [for better mental healthcare] in NSW and across Australia is just enormous,” she said.
“We really do need more support for what we often call the missing middle – the people that are too unwell to be managed with their GP and psychology support but often aren’t unwell enough to need the current public hospital admissions.
“It will take much more than one new centre but you have to start somewhere. Let’s hope that this is the beginning of a strong and integrated mental health system in NSW.”
After more than two years of additional pressure on the healthcare workforce due to Covid – including an increase in acute presentations, staff burnout and surgery backlogs – McMullen said it remained unclear how the facility and others like it would be staffed.
“It is so essential that infrastructure is followed up with ongoing, recurrent funding, particularly for staffing and training,” she said.
“Workforce across the healthcare sector is a really big issue going forward. More work needs to be done to make that an attractive career prospect and to make sure that our existing facilities, as well as new ones, are appropriately staffed.”
Nurses have taken industrial action and strikes multiple times this year over pay and conditions.
Paramedics across the state have also taken industrial action, with leaders in the sector raising concerns poor conditions and low wages would see young people leave the field entirely and lead to worse outcomes for patients.
An Australian Paramedics Australia spokesperson said that having enough skilled workers was key in addressing the mental health crisis.
“If there’s not enough paramedics to get someone to hospital, or enough nurses to attend to them, they won’t get the care that they deserve,” the spokesperson said. “Healthcare workers are the backbone of our healthcare system.
“A long-term failure to invest in better healthcare is letting staff and patients down.”
The union is calling for 1,500 extra paramedics to be hired in NSW.
