SEDIBENG. – Treatment of psychiatric patients in Gauteng is hugely compromised by a shortage of about 2700 beds and unsuitable facilities in bad repair. This follows a 22-page comprehensive written reply by Gauteng Health MEC Gwen Ramokgopa to questions in the Gauteng Legislature recently.
According to norms for severe psychiatric conditions, there should be 28 acute psychiatric beds/100 000 people. There should therefore be 3780 such beds for 13.5 million people in Gauteng, but there are only 1058 beds.A major problem is that many patients admitted to hospitals for the required 72-hour treatment and observation period are not placed in dedicated psychiatric wards.
Gauteng public hospitals admitted 18387 psychiatric patients in 2016, but 4425 of these (24%) were placed in ordinary wards with other patients.Other hospitals do have psychiatric wards but these are inadequate so many psychiatric patients are placed in other wards as per the following figures for 2016:
Thelle Mogoerane – admitted 1504 psychiatric patients, 1113 of whom were placed in general wards. Sebokeng – admitted 673 psychiatric patients, but 192 were placed in general wards. Tambo Memorial – admitted 507 psychiatric patients, but placed 214 in general wards. Jubilee – admitted 495 psychiatric patients, and placed 49 in general wards.Leratong – admitted 965 psychiatric patients, and only had to place 24 in other wards.
Parties said that placement of psychiatric patients in general wards is not ideal as there should be special security measures, both for their safety and the safety of others. A number of suicides, injuries and sexual assaults have already been reported at various hospitals for this reason. Many of the psychiatric wards are in a poor state and need urgent repair.At the Sebokeng Hospital the current ward is not compliant with the provisions of the Mental Health Act.
