A Queensland-first trial giving mental health patients the ability to receive treatment in their homes is underway on the Fraser Coast, with calls to expand to other regions.
The $4.4 million Hospital in the Home program is funded by the Queensland Government and will run for two years in Hervey Bay.
The Wide Bay Hospital and Health Services specialised services program manager Cindy Mays said until now there were limited options for people with mental health issues to seek treatment.
"At Hervey Bay we don't have access directly to inpatient beds," she said.
"Our inpatient unit is in Maryborough which is 30 kilometres away.
"People often had to go there for admission, removing them from their family and supports for a period of time."
Faster recovery times
Ms Mays said doctors, nurses, allied health staff and psychologists would provide 24-hour support to the patients at home and the style of care could deliver them better outcomes and a faster recovery.
"The reason is that the home is often a very supportive environment with their families, their pets and their routine," she said.
"There's a model in Tasmania that's been operating for a little while now … so there is evidence to suggest people do recover better and faster in their own environment."
Only four patients can be treated at a time in the virtual beds that the program offers and there is strict criteria for patients to be considered suitable for the program.
"You have to be over 18 and you should have a suitable home environment with family around," Ms Mays said.
High demand for mental health support
The program was first launched three months ago and was already experiencing a high demand, with the four virtual beds at capacity and 22 accepted referrals for other patients to take part.
Team leader Anna Anderson said patients would be monitored around the clock during their care to mitigate any risk to themselves or others.
"While the program aims to reduce the need for inpatient admission, it receives full 24-hour support from the inpatient unit team and, if it's needed, a patient can be transferred there," she said.
If successful, Ms Mays said it was hoped the program would be expanded across the Wide Bay and the rest of the state.
"That's certainly our goal if there was an opportunity to extend or grow the model that we would like to do that," she said.
Plans are also underway for an inpatient unit to be built at Hervey Bay to provide more services to patients.
"That's probably still two years away, so we're in the process of designing and building that … and that is the longer term plan."
