COUNCILLOR Warren Aubin has renewed calls to relocate the Panorama Clinic within Bathurst Base Hospital to ease pressure on the Accident and Emergency Department.
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Cr Aubin has called on the State Government to provide funding support to move Panorama Clinic, the hospital's mental health unit, to another area within the hospital, with a view of easing bed blocks in the Emergency Department [ED].
Since COVID hit, the Panorama Clinic, which provides mental health services, has been run as a "hospital at home" and its 12 beds were reallocated to the ED.
However, as per the plan, Panorama Clinic was reinstated earlier this month, since then the ED has experienced bed blocks.
Cr Aubin said he wanted to be clear this was not about reducing mental health services, but rather a better allocation of available space.
He said since making the call to relocate the service, he has heard the hospital's delivery of mental health services during Covid was so successful, it was a finalist for a NSW Health award for excellence. He said this reinforces the success of the program's delivery at home.
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"It has been shown hospital at home worked very well. I'm not for one second saying we don't need a mental health service.
"What I am saying this service worked very well when delivered at home, as did the ED when the Panorama Clinic's 12 extra beds were used by the ED as overnight and short stay beds."
"The Government needs to look at building another clinic on hospital grounds to cater for mental health."
"This will free up beds for the ED," Cr Aubin said.
Cr Aubin also noted the pandemic still exists, and questioned what will happen if there is an outbreak in Bathurst, now the additional beds have been taken back from the ED and returned to Panorama Clinic.
When asked about funding to relocate Panorama Clinic, Member for Bathurst, Paul Toole said the functioning of the hospital was "a matter for its management."
He said no one wants to see a bed block, but said "Panorama Clinic is an import service in the community and critical in supporting mental health services."
He said the ED was only moved into Panorama Clinic in readiness for a COVID-19 breakout and was always earmarked to return.
A spokesperson for health has previously said "the provision of mental health services in the home, which was undertaken as part of the Bathurst Health Service's response to COVID-19 has been evaluated positively, and further work is being done to determine how these services can be used safely and appropriately in the future."
