A new study coauthored by the SANE Australia mental health charity and the University of New England has resulted in controversy. While the people who were interviewed for the study shared their negative experiences of hospitals and Emergency Departments (EDs), the validity of the accounts has been questioned by a healthcare professional.
The hospital-based issues highlighted in the study are:
- Suicidal patients are being discharged prematurely from hospitals without any follow-up.
- Preferential treatment for people with physical ailments over those who present with mental health problems.
- Suicidal patients are not being taken seriously.
- ED staff still consider suicide a choice or self-inflicted.
- Hostility toward mental health patients.
The researchers interviewed a total of 31 people throughout Australia, all of whom had previously tried to take their own lives. The data presented on Thursday was fairly overwhelming, as 80 per cent of the participants reported negative hospital experiences, while one-third felt that they were not taken seriously by ED staff. Interview subjects thought they were misunderstood or hastily discharged.
However, Associate Professor Sally McCarthy from the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine objected to the conclusions of the joint study. Ms McCarthy told the media that she did not accept the claims of poor treatment in EDs, labeling them ignorant and out of touch with reality. Ms McCarthy explained that patient care in Australian EDs is not only of a high standard, but "patients reported higher satisfaction with emergency department care than care received in psychiatric services."
SANE's suicide prevention manager, Sarah Coker, informed ABC News that for every person who takes their own life, it is estimated that 20 more people had also attempted suicide. Ms Coker emphasised the crucial importance of breaking down stereotypes and myths so that people who require care are more inclined to communicate openly with medical staff.