Department of Health Library Services ePublications - Historical Collection
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Northern Territory Department of Health Library Services Historical Collection
DL HIST 362.2 NOR 1984/85
00
2 7 HISTOR CAL COLLECTIONMENTAL HEALTH ACT
ANNUAL REPORT 1984/85
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MENTAL HEALTH ACT
ANNUAL REPORT
1984/85
NT DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
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1.
1
ANNUAL REPORT AS REQUIRED BY SECTION 41 OF THE MENTAL HEALTH ACT
00257
Psychiatric care in the Northern Territory is provided by the Department of Health. Both the Royal Darwin Hospital (RDH) and Alice Springs Hospital (ASH) have psychiatric units which admit patients under Mental Health legislation.
Because persons who are psychiatrically ill are sometimes unable to give informed consent to their own treatment, the care of these patients is given legal basis in the provisions of the Mental Health Act.
The medical profession is given authority by a magistrate to take a person into care under section 7 of the Act and to keep him in care by means of an order under section 13 of the Act. In an emergency, a person can be taken into immediate care by a policeman or a Medical Practitioner, however a magistrate's concurrence must be sought as soon as practicable (section 9 refers). The Mental Health Act details the necessary steps which must be taken by personnel involved to ensure that the civil liberties of the patient are protected.
Psychiatric patients who are legally capable of giving informed consent to treatment are not subject to the Mental Health Act. These patients are described as voluntary patients. Statistics are kept on these patients as well as on involuntary patients because the one person may be in both categories during the course of his or her treatment.
LONG TERM PATIENTS
There were 13 patients in South Australian mental institutions who were sent to South Australia by an order under the Mental Health Act. These patients are reviewed by a Northern Territory magistrate every six months.
An additional 21 psychiatric patients for whom no formal orders are current. are under institutional care in South Australia. Both of these groups are the financial responsibi- lity of the Northern Territory goverrunent. Legally, they are subject to the Mental Health legislation in South Australia.
Other long term patients for whom six month orders are regularly renewed are 2 intellectually handicapped patients at Chan Park Nursing Home, and 2 patients in the maximum security facility at the Royal Darwin Hospital.
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2. Admission Status of Patients
TABLE 1: Admission Status by Hospital
Voluntary Involuntary Not Recorded TOTALS
RDH
469 (81.1%)
101 (17.5%)
8
(1.4%) 578 (100%)
ASH 209 (84.3%)
39 (15.7%)
248 (100%)
TOTAL 678 (82.1%)
140 (16.9%)
8
(1%) 826 (100%)
In 1984/85 there were 826 psychiatric admissions to the Royal Darwin and Alice Springs Hospitals. Of these, 140 ( 16. 9%) were admitted in· accordance with the provisions of the Mental Health Act. This is an increase from the 1983/4 figure of 82 ( 12. 3%), but is still significantly lower than comparable figures interstate. In 1980/81, 27% of patients in South Australian psychiatric units were involuntary patients.
3. Previous Admissions
TABLE 2: Admission status by Previous admissions*
Previous Admissions No Previous Admissions TOTALS
VOLUNTARY 209 133 342
INVOLUNTARY 57 23 80
TOTALS 266 (63%)
156 (37%)
422 (100%) Table 2 shows that the majority (63%) of both voluntary and involuntary patients had had previous admissions.
* The percentages in Table 2 are based on the frequencies of data collected from January 1985.
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4. Sections of the Mental Health Act used by admitting hospital
TABLE 3: Section of Act by hospital
RDH ASH TOTALS
section 7 40 27 67
(41.6%)
section 8 23 23
(14.3%)
section 9 40 5 45
(28%)
section 13 14 2 16
(9.9%)
section 14 9 9
(5.6%)
section 24 1 1
(0.6%)
TOTALS 118 43 161
(100%) One hundred and sixty-one warrants/orders were used for 140 admissions. (i.e. some admissions required more than one warrant/order).
The most frequently used section for detaining patients under the Mental Health Act in the Northern Territory was section 7.
An equal number in Darwin were detained under section 7 and section 9.
S.7 S.8 S.9 S.13 S.14 S.24
Warrants to take person into custody Telephone application for warrant Taken into custody without a warrant Order to hold person in custody
Order to authorize treatment of a person while in custody
Order for medical report for person already held in custody/imprisonment
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5. Discharge Status of All Patients
TABLE 4: Admission Status by Place of Discharge
VOLUNTARY INVOLUNTARY TOTALS
Home 505 87 592
(80.4%)
Transfer in NT 12 2 14
(1.9%)
Transfer 1 6 7
Interstate (1.0%)
Abscond 63 15 78
(10.6%)
Other 30 15 45
( 6 .1%)
TOTALS 611 125 736 *
(100%)
* Number not recorded pertaining to discharge status - 58.
Table 4 indicates that the majority of both voluntary and involuntary patients returned home upon discharge. Only 1
(0.2%) voluntary patient, compared with 6 (4.8%) involuntary patients, was transferred interstate.
Of the voluntary patients 10.3% absconded compared with 12% of involuntary patients.
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6. Sex of Patients
TABLE 5: Admission status by Sex
VOLUNTARY INVOLUNTARY
Male 407 90
Female 267 47
TOTALS 674 137
* Number not recorded - 15
Males comprised 61.3% of all admissions.
admissions, 65.7% were males.
7. Ethnicity o{ _Patients
TABLE 6: Admission status by Ethnic origin VOLUNTARY INVOLUNTARY
Aboriginal 98 25
Non-Aboriginal 578 114
TOTAL 676 139
* Number not recorded - 11
Of all
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TOTALS 497 (61.3%)
314 (38.7%)
811*
(100%)
involuntary
TOTALS 123 (15.1%)
692 (84.9%)
815*
(100%)
Aboriginals comprised the minority group in both voluntary and involuntary admissions.
Involuntary admissions comprised 20% of all Aboriginal admissions and 16.5% of all non-Aboriginal admissions.
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8. Length of Stay
TABLE 7: Admission Status by Length of Stay
VOLUNTARY INVOLUNTARY TOTALS
1-3 days 142 22 164
(20.2%)
4-7 days 174 42 216
(26.6%)
8-31 days 250 53 303
(37.3%)
32-122 days 56 10 66
(8.1%)
123-183 days 4 4
( 0. 5%)
More than 46 13 59
183 days (7.3%)
TOTALS 672 140 812*
(100%)
*
Number not recorded pertaining to length of stay - 14./
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9. Diagnoses of Patients
Tables 8 and 9 list the most frequently diagnosed conditions of voluntary and involuntary patients respectively. Schizo- phrenic psychoses occurred more frequently in both groups.
Psychotic disorders tended to feature more prominently in involuntary patient groups, whereas neurotic disorders were more prominent amongst voluntary patients.
TABLE 8: Diagnosis of Voluntary Patients
DIAGNOSIS FREQUENCY
Schizophrenic psychoses 174
Neurotic disorders 136
Personality disorders 91
Affective psychoses 62
Drug dependence 27
Adjustment reaction 27
Other psychotic conditions 59
Other non-psychotic 94
TOTAL 670
TABLE 9: Diagnosis of Involuntary Patients
DIAGNOSIS FREQUENCY
Schizophrenic psychoses Personality disorders Affective psychoses Alcoholic psychoses Neurotic disorders
Other psychotic conditions Other non-psychotic conditions TOTAL
42 17 15 14 12 21 26 147
PERCENTAGE
26.0 20.3 13.6 9.3 4.0 4.0 8.8 14.0 100
PERCENTAGE 28.6 11.5 10.2 9.S 8.2 14.3 17.7 100
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