Arabic version: جلسة تحقيق تسمع مخاوف بشأن سعة وحدة الصحة النفسية في مستشفى الأمير تشارلز
According to ABC News, a coronial inquest is examining three patient suicides at The Prince Charles Hospital’s mental health unit in Brisbane between May and December 2023, with evidence that the service remained under significant bed-capacity pressure.
Coroner Megan Fairweather is probing the deaths of Barry Ellery, 77, Miranda Meyer, 37, and Kendal Quicke, 31. The inquiry is considering the appropriateness and adequacy of mental health care and treatment provided by the Metro North Hospital and Health Service at the time of the deaths.
A treating psychiatrist, whose identity is subject to a non-publication order, told the hearing that mental health patients were regularly admitted to the thoracic ward in 2023. The unit has two wings and 60 beds, but up to 12 psychiatric patients could be placed in the thoracic ward at one time, the psychiatrist said. Although that ward is no longer used for psychiatric patients, she said the unit still had “a major problem with bed capacity” and could not meet demand in its catchment area.
The inquest also heard evidence about Ms Quicke’s care before her death on November 12, 2023. A trainee psychiatrist said his inpatient workload was about 11 to 13 patients at the time, compared with recommended numbers of about four to five. Ms Quicke’s consultant psychiatrist said she had assessed hourly visual observations as appropriate, but nursing staff changed them to 15-minute checks on November 5. The treating psychiatrist and trainee said they did not recall being told of the change before her death.
The hearing follows a 2024 external review that found the hospital’s mental health wards were no longer fit for purpose, did not align with contemporary facility guidelines and posed potential safety risks. Ms Fairweather said the inquest was a fact-finding exercise rather than one intended to cast blame. She will consider whether further changes to Metro North mental health service delivery are needed.
