Prince of Wales Hospital Opens Mental Health ICU Heralding “A New Era”

The NSW Health Minister Jillian Skinner said the facility heralded a new era of mental health care, as the state-of-the-art, 12-bed high-care, specialist Mental Health Intensive Care Unit (MHICU) opens at Sydney's Prince of Wales Hospital in Randwick.
She said the MHICU would provide short-term intensive care and treatment for patients requiring a higher level of care than is available in adult acute mental health units.
"The NSW Government's investment in this facility is a reflection of our commitment to improving the lives of those affected by mental illness through increasing access to specialist mental health services where they are most needed.
“This new unit will not only provide specialist mental health services to the people of the South Eastern Sydney and Illawarra Shoalhaven local health districts but also provide vital assistance and support to their families and carers," she said.
The NSW Mental Health Minister Kevin Humphries said the specialised facility would allow more people who needed additional support managing a mental health condition to receive that support in their local community, close to their families, friends, workplaces and schools.
"People living with a mental illness are often among the most vulnerable members of our communities, particularly (if they are among) those with a severe, acute mental illness who require a more immediate and higher level of care," he said.
"In a first for south-eastern Sydney, this specialised facility will ensure that people needing this type of care will receive it in a dignified and humane setting.
"The structured model of therapeutic treatment and care that the MHICU will provide is designed to minimise conflict and deliver the best health outcomes for patients.
"By building the new unit close to the existing inpatient mental health services at the Randwick Hospitals Campus, we will be strengthening teaching and research linkages, and ultimately better supporting patients and our mental health workforce," Humphries said