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Mental Health and AOD Education Month – Week 3

February 14, 2022

Mental Health and AOD Education Month – Week 3

Continuing our five week program of promotion, education and training, this week our topic is Best Practice Mental Health Care in Western Health Emergency Departments.

Our focus for the next two weeks is best practice care, starting this week with principles and standards that support effective and safe care of patients with mental health care needs. This includes the principle of least restrictive care, and care standards for patient engagement, observation and review set out in new Western Health Guidelines.

Please take a moment to view this short video presentation from Pallavi Pathak, Clinical Nurse Educator for Mental Health at Sunshine ED. This discussion includes strategies for engaging with patients with mental health care needs.

Please click this link to access the video.

Staff References

In relation to Best Practice Mental Health Care, ED Leadership would like to direct your attention to these tools and resources:

These Western Health Guidelines apply to Footscray and Sunshine EDs, and expand upon our existing best practice principles of ED patient care. Of note, these introduce new care standards for patients with a stay in ED longer than six hours.

This staff guide summarises the above Guidelines, as well as complimentary Guidelines on care provision for patients with AOD care needs. This summary includes engaging families and carers, patient care standards, patient discharge and patient documentation.

This staff guide describes the specialist services supporting mental health patient care at Footscray and Sunshine ED. Instructions for making referrals are included.

  • This week’s topic ties closely with Module 2 – Patient Engagement and Recognising Deterioration in Mental State (Part 1) from the Foundations of Emergency Department Mental Health Care Training Package. Estimated completion time: 20 minutes.

Tip: Search “Foundations” in the WeLearn courses catalogue.

Login to WeLearn here.

As always, you’ll find these links collected on the The Mental Health and AOD Education and Support page on unitED for your future reference.

Medical Transfer Form

From this week, for a trial period, we ask that all patient transfers from ED to Mental Health Inpatient Units have AD 57.4 Acute Mental Health Admission – Safe Medical Transfer list (Medical Transfer Form) completed.

Please keep the original and send a photocopy with the patient’s file. Let the ED Leadership Team know if you have questions.

Thursday Webinar

This week’s webinar panel includes Kathleen Kelly, Senior Mental Health Nurse (MWAMHS) and Bec Long, Team Leader, Sunshine Adult Acute Psychiatric Unit (SAAPU).

This webinar is open to all ED staff and volunteers. A Q&A segment will follow the presentation. This webinar will be recorded.

Please see the details below to join the webinar at 2:00pm this Thursday, February 17th:

Please click the link below to join the webinar:

https://westernhealth.zoom.us/j/99157237795?pwd=S0tVdFEvdkVzWksvL3A4eEpHaWFtZz09

Meeting ID: 991 5723 7795

Passcode: 127924

– Be safe – be smart – be kind, the unitED Team –

– To review previous News bulletins, please see here. – 

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