LOCALS FACING YEARS OF CHALLENGES
ACROSS the board it feels like our struggling health system is on the precipice of a crisis. In recent weeks there have been several stories by this masthead on different local health services that are buckling under the pressure to meet post-pandemic demand – whether through a lack of staff availability, increased need or the sheer weight of the backlog of cases put on hold during Covid restrictions.
One of the most troubling of these is the continued and growing strain on our public and private mental health services.
Yesterday we reported on Wandana Heights teen Natalie (pictured) who, despite a long history of serious mental health struggles, had been waiting six months to see a new psychiatrist after her previous one left last year. She had also been waiting since March for private inpatient care following a referral by her GP.
Today, Barwon Health Mental Health Drugs and Alcohol Services clinical director Steve Moylan acknowledges that the shortage of psychiatrists could also be adding to the current high demand on local mental health services in the public health system.
When the public and private systems are struggling and falling so far behind the demonstrated demand, there is a critical problem that will not be fixed overnight.
It might not seem as instantly obviously dangerous as a heart attack or cancer diagnosis, but untreated mental health conditions can be just as deadly. At the very least we are asking people like Natalie – who has stopped going to school and work while she awaits treatment – to put their lives on hold and suffer for an unspecified amount of time while they wait for help. It is cruel to people who are at their most vulnerable, and places an unfair strain on the already overworked health professionals who are diligently trying to help as many people as possible.
Governments are slowly starting to react to the burgeoning crisis with several state and federal funding promises in recent months. But it is not enough money and not enough time, and does little to help the people who are struggling while our country faces a critical shortage of psychiatrists.
The turmoil of the past two years has brought mental health to the forefront of many conversations. The financial and social pressures borne of the extended periods of extreme lockdown has, not surprisingly, created flow-on effects that in many cases are still emerging. Combine that with interrupted care and a shortage of local specialists – not to mention our skyrocketing population – and we are facing years of health challenges.