This is Care Opinion [siteRegion]. Did you want Care Opinion [usersRegionBasedOnIP]?

"Seeing Double"

About: Perth Children's Hospital / Ward 4A - Adolescents

(as a parent/guardian),

Our child has very recently spent in excess of 360 days in Perth Children's Hospital over a 20 month period. 

They suffer combined mental illnesses being Anorexia Nervosa, Depression, Anxiety, PTSD and Body Dysmorphic Disorder. 

Eating Disorders (ED) are such a cruel, debilitating disease and are relentless in making a person feel disgusting, worthless and hopeless. In most ED patients the person will have a distorted perception of their body image and see a severely flawed body when looking in a mirror.

When in hospital for re-feeding, ED patients receive a substantial amount of energy per day to bring their weight up in a relatively short period of time. This weight gain often locates in the stomach area making the person look and feel bloated.

In my opinion, the last thing these young patients need to see when having a shower is a full-on view of their naked body in the overly large mirror, having the Eating Disorder voice screaming at them how awful they look. We know they don't look awful but they have a distorted body image.

I have on numerous occasions (on the ward) blu-tacked a newspaper to the mirror in the room so that my child had one less thing to have to contend with in that day.

I feel the mirrors are far too big and need to be fully removed and replaced with a small one just big enough to see when brushing hair and teeth.

I also believe that not having a full-length mirror in the bathroom will eliminate the temptation of some young people to take a "selfie" which is extremely unhelpful when dealing with an eating disorder.

I believe that there may be an idea of a decal to cover a part of the mirror in the rooms on Ward 4a, POD rooms at least. In my opinion, this would only be successful if the whole mirror was covered with a small circle cut out at head height only. I feel sure the decals would get picked off over time.

I am pleased that locking of the bathroom doors has been introduced in the past few months in the POD. This eliminates the temptation for a young person to hide away or self-harm and is especially helpful with patients suffering Bulimia, taking away easier access to purge.  

I think taking away the extremely large mirror is a simple request for one tiny thing in a very complicated illness.

 

Do you have a similar story to tell? Tell your story & make a difference ››

Responses

Response from Sue Baker, Nursing Co-Director (Medical), Child and Adolescent Health Service - WA 4 years ago
We are preparing to make a change
Sue Baker
Nursing Co-Director (Medical),
Child and Adolescent Health Service - WA
Submitted on 3/03/2020 at 12:44 PM
Published on Care Opinion at 1:01 PM


Dear leoen99,

I was very sorry to hear your experiences in relation to the bathroom mirrors in the Ward 4A bathrooms at Perth Children’s Hospital.

I understand how confronting mirrors can be for patients with eating disorders and body dysmorphia and very much appreciate your feedback.

Following previous feedback received through Patient Opinion, we had arranged for a border decal to be fitted onto the mirrors to reduce the size of the reflective screen. Before applying the decal we have consulted with a number of families and staff and due to further feedback, we have reviewed the decal size again and have updated the design and artwork to include a much larger design which will be 300mm x 300mm around the whole mirror – all the effect of this can be seen on the below design drawing. We believe that this solution will provide the best outcome to give greater coverage.

We have anticipated that the decals will be fitted early March 2020.

Once again, we appreciate your feedback as it is essential for us to assist in improving our service.

Kind regards,

Sue Peter

Nursing Co-Director (Medical)Foliage mirror decal

  • {{helpful}} {{helpful == 1 ? "person thinks" : "people think"}} this response is helpful
Response from Katie McKenzie, Executive Lead Mental Health, Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service, Child and Adolescent Health Service 4 years ago
We have made a change
Katie McKenzie
Executive Lead Mental Health, Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service,
Child and Adolescent Health Service
Submitted on 5/05/2020 at 6:55 PM
Published on Care Opinion on 6/05/2020 at 8:30 AM


picture of Katie McKenzie

Dear leoen99,

I can confirm that the decals are in place around all the mirrors in the bathrooms in our Eating Disorder POD beds. This has greatly reduced the size of mirror that the patients have to see themselves, as well as providing a decorative feature to the bathroom.

This was completed at the end of March 2020.

If you need any further information, please feel free to contact us.

Kind regards,

Katie McKenzie

Executive Director of Nursing

  • {{helpful}} {{helpful == 1 ? "person thinks" : "people think"}} this response is helpful

Update posted by leoen99 (a parent/guardian)

Thank you for taking our opinions and suggestions into consideration.

The decals I am sure will assist in lessening some stress and anxiety whilst using the bathrooms on 4a.

Opinions
Next Response j
Previous Response k