"Mental health admission"

My teenage child was admitted to Bentley after a few days’ emergency ED stay at another hospital due to trying to end their life at a young age. They are now too old for PCH emergency, I recall they didn’t want my child so was transferred via triage to emergency at SCGH as they are now considered an adult. My child was admitted to Bentley EMYU after a few days in what felt like hell in the other hospital emergency ED in a bed with a chair and nothing else.

The staff were wonderful at Bentley EMYU but it seemed they were stretched to their resources. But what isn’t wonderful is that as I understand it, there were no psychologists. We were told it’s due to covid and the youth were left waiting to try and start healing with the only option available was mobile phones all day as there was nothing to do and awaiting the OT who I believe had about 12 youth to see.

It seemed these children were sitting around feeling miserable all day yet promised within the other hospital by the head of the psychiatrist team that a psychologist and psychiatrist would be engaging and teaching my child skills and coping ways to deal with suicide ideation. This wasn’t occurring. There were no psychologists.

What was even more distressing was there apparently used to be youth groups within the hospital at Bentley EMYU but due to covid, management thought it best to cancel these. Why....the children are living together, eating together and I wonder how on earth would sitting in a group circle sharing support contribute to covid more so than sitting around watching tv all day.

It seemed to me these children were bored, sad, depressed, anxious in an unfamiliar environment and were using all their data on mobiles texting all day because there was nothing to do or learn. This isn’t good enough I'm afraid. Based on my experience, I will be writing to all management so that the staff and patrons of Bentley get the support and assistance I feel they deserve. My child, their first time, had struggled with the stay of loneliness and was looking forward to learning and growing and then that anticipation that I felt was sold to them from the other hospital was burst and my child felt more depressed and lonely for doing nothing.

I believe the staff needed something to change and table tennis to come back, basketball, let’s get these kids out sharing, learning and being active participants to learn and grow and heal. Keeping them on a short walk each day, sitting around and it seemed expecting the OT to do the work of psychologists I believe was inhumane and cruel. I felt that blaming covid for group sessions of healing isn’t due to covid, in my opinion this was funding cut at its worse on our young people.

So my child, who had been there for shy of a week and had no skills or tools, still wished to end their life. How do I explain that I believe the system is broken to them or explain what I felt was promised isn’t ever going to happen.