Mental health inpatient services in Western Sydney

Acute inpatient mental health services provide voluntary and in-voluntary short-term inpatient management and treatment during an acute phase of mental illness, such as depression, psychosis, mania, schizophrenia, or suicidal thoughts.

This level of care is offered until the person has been assessed as recovered enough to be treated effectively and safely in the community.

Subacute care is intensive health care for people who are not severely ill but need help:

• managing new or changing health conditions
• living as independently as possible
• to regain their ability to carry out activities of daily life after an episode of illness.

Subacute services provide temporary treatment and rehabilitation options to minimise the need for hospital admission. In-ward rehabilitation promotes independence and quality of life for people with a mental illness during a crucial point of recovery or relapse.

Non-acute care is where the primary clinical purpose or treatment goal is support for a patient with:

• impairment
• activity limitation
• participation restriction due to a health condition.

This is also known as ‘maintenance care’ and aims to improve the patient’s functioning and quality of life.

Redbank House is a mixed gender mental health inpatient unit for adolescents aged between 12 and 18 years old, presenting with an acute or serious mental health problem.

We provide a range of therapeutic programs that are designed to meet the needs of each young person and their family or carers. Our programs are delivered individually or in a group setting, and always with input from the young person and their family and carers.

Exercise physiology aims to prevent or manage short term (acute) or long term (chronic) disease or injury, and assist in restoring a person’s physical function, health, or wellness to the highest possible level.

Exercise physiology interventions are exercise-based and include:

• health and physical activity education
• advice and support
• lifestyle modification.

This kind of therapy has a strong focus on achieving behavioural change.

A dietitian can help provide support to people who are:

• experiencing problems with weight
• concerned about their diet
• have problems with health that relate to diet.

They will give feedback and advice on diet. They will also help to set food-related goals to manage these aspects.

Art therapy uses the creative process of making art to improve a person’s physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing. It encourages people to express and understand emotions through artistic expression and through the creative process.

Art therapy can have the following benefits:

• reduction in anxiety
• improved self-esteem
• creates a safe space to explore your emotions.

Pet therapy (also known as animal-assisted therapy) is a guided interaction between a person and a trained animal that also involves the animal’s handler. 

The purpose of pet therapy is to help someone recover from, or cope with, a health problem or mental health disorder. Benefits can include:

• increased self-esteem
• improved interactions with others
• better verbal communication.

Dogs and cats are most commonly used in pet therapy. However, fish, guinea pigs, horses, and other animals that meet screening criteria can also be used.

Emotions are not only an important part of our daily lives; they also contribute to our identities. They help us to understand who we are and allow us to share who we are with others.

Emotion-focused therapy recognises the importance of emotions and makes them the focus in therapy sessions. A lack of emotional awareness or avoiding unpleasant emotions can be harmful, so this kind of therapy teaches people to be more aware of their emotions and how to cope with unstable emotions.

A sensory room is a space designed to help people with sensory issues learn to regulate their brain’s negative reactions to external stimuli by developing coping skills for these experiences. 

Sensory rooms aim to provide a relaxed atmosphere where the person is surrounded by pleasant sensations such as unique tactile experiences, relaxing aromas, and interesting light effects

The aim of diversional therapy is to enhance a person’s quality of life by encouraging them to participate in recreation and leisure activities to improve their personal satisfaction and self-esteem.

Recreational programs can include:

• games
• gardening
• listening to music
• pet therapy
• education sessions like cooking and grooming.

Occupational therapy is used when someone is having difficulty with everyday tasks that allow them to live independently. These difficulties may be caused by illness, accident or workplace injury.

An occupational therapist can identify a person’s strengths and difficulties, such as looking after themselves or taking part in social activities and will help them work out practical solutions to improve their quality of life. 

From a mental health perspective, occupation therapy can help a person develop ways to cope with mental illness day-to-day.

Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) is designed to help people change unhelpful ways of thinking and behaving, while also accepting who they are. It helps people learn to manage emotions by recognising, experiencing, and accepting them.

DBT can also help people to understand why they might harm themselves, so they are more likely to change their harmful behaviour.

DBT is usually used to help people diagnosed with borderline personality disorder as people with this disorder feel uncontrollable emotions, have troubled relationships, and have a disturbed sense of self.

We provide perinatal infant mental health assessments and support for mothers and primary caregivers with severe mental illness.

Our aim is to support the infant-mother relationship, maternal mental illness, and infant development. Support is provided via the phone, home visits, or visits to Redbank House.
 

The consultation liaison team responds to requests from medical teams within Westmead Hospital for the assessment and psychological intervention of inpatients with chronic or acute psychological or behavioural conditions including:

• difficulty adjusting to physical illness or injury
• anxiety after heart related events or treatment
• experiencing fears, for example a fear of falling
• motivational and non-compliance issues, for example not eating, not engaging in rehabilitation, or not following medical advice
• experiencing phantom limb pain and difficulty adjusting to amputations.

Psychologists are experts in human behaviour. They have studied how the mind works and how people think, react, and behave.

They can help people with a broad range of issues such as:

• fears
• phobias and anxiety problems
• stress and chronic pain
• depression
• compulsive and addictive behaviour.

Psychologists are specialists at helping people develop healthy ways of coping with the symptoms of their mental health disorders.

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a relatively safe and effective treatment for certain mental health conditions that are considered life threatening, such as severe depression and bipolar disorder.

ECT involves passing small, brief, carefully controlled electric currents through the brain in order to trigger a brief seizure. The person being treated doesn’t feel discomfort and usually wakes up five to 10 minutes after the procedure.

ECT is a useful therapy because it works more quickly than other treatments such as medicines or therapy. 

Forensic mental health services provide assessment and treatment of people with a mental disorder and a history of criminal offending, or people who are at risk of offending.

People who may be experiencing mental illness or mental disorder can be referred for assessment by:

• police
• courts
• prison
• health or mental health services
• justice agencies.

The Western Sydney Local Health District Aboriginal Mental Health Support Team (AMHST) provide a culturally safe and appropriate mental health, social and emotional wellbeing support service to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the Western Sydney community.

The AMHST team also provides support and consultation to non-Aboriginal community mental health clinicians on working with Aboriginal patients to provide high quality care.