Fearne announces plans for construction of acute mental health hospital at Mater Dei
The government will be implementing a mental health strategy plan from the year 2020, which will see the construction of an acute mental health facility at Mater Dei Hospital, projected to cost €150 million; a €30 million structural refurbishment of Mount Carmel Hospital (MCH) in five years; and an improved focus on community care, Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne announced yesterday.
GPs will also be trained in the field of mental health to better serve the community.
The announcement came after the National Audit Office (NAO) published a damning report criticising MCH’s infrastructure, sanitary facilities, security, human resources and community care.
Fearne said that the government had already begun working on a plan for mental health and refurbishment at MCH, explaining that the hospital faced ‘legacy problems’ due to a lack of attention given to the hospital by previous governments. He also pointed to work already being conducted at the hospital to improve the current standards.
He acknowledged the shortcomings outlined in the report, stressing that the first step was to recognise the problems and find a solution.
“Unlike others, who just swept the problem under the rug and allowed it to grow,” he said.
Fearne highlighted that while there while the hospital certainly faced major issues, all the staff at MCH carried out their duties well.
Mental health, he explained, would be a thematic policy in the national health plan for 20202030. The first draft of the plan, which will be discussed with stakeholders, is to be issued in September, with a national conference on mental health taking place in November.
“It will be a systematic plan and not crisis management,” he said.
The plan for mental health would be built on three pillars, Fearne said. The first will focus on community care, which will see an increase in mental care facilities at health centres; an increase in daycare centres for mental health (which will be handled by the health department); and the training of family doctors within the community to deal with mental health issues.
The government also plans to open an expression of interest for NGOs who wish to work with the government in terms of mental health care in the community.
“We need to stop competing and work together,” he said.
The second is the construction of an acute mental health hospital at Mater Dei, projected to cost €150 million, which will house 100 beds and have an outpatient centre.
Speaking to The Malta Independent, Fearne said that the new building would not take up any space on ODZ land or the nearby valley, adding that the government had already acquired some of the sites and was working with the Lands Authority to acquire even more.
The third is a major infrastructural overhaul at MCH, which is expected to take five years. The first step – which Fearne explained would start in the coming days – is the relocation of patients at MCH who do not require mental health care in order to free up space during the reconstruction period. Three empty wards will be ready for refurbishment in the coming weeks.
One hundred and ninety patients are expected to be relocated after consultation with mental health experts, while patients and offices within MCH will shift around different buildings when construction takes place.