Psychiatry support when people need it most

An innovative partnership is improving GP and patient access to specialist psychiatric support in south east Melbourne.

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Long waiting lists for hospital psychiatry services has seen many people missing out on timely and appropriate mental health care – especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This year, SEMPHN lead innovative partnerships with Monash Health and with Alfred Health that resulted in more than 70 additional community members’ and 60 General Practitioners (GPs) having access to specialist advice. How? By granting GPs free access to secondary consultations with an experienced psychiatrist.

SEMPHN’s Access & Referral team acts as a connector to the phone consultations between GPs and psychiatrists, which covers everything from diagnostic issues and medication options to safety plans and general management.

The non-urgent service includes generalist and subspecialist advice for people of all ages, including children, older people, people who identify as LGBTIQA+, people with intellectual disability and parents in the perinatal period.

Medication review and treatment advice have been the most common reasons for referral, with complex consultations also coming into play. February 2022 saw the highest number of referrals, with most referrals coming from GPs in Cranbourne, Carrum Downs, Narre Warren, Berwick, Dandenong and Pakenham.

SEMPHN's Project Lead said the collaboration with Monash Health and with Alfred Health has been a successful initiative for all involved.   

“The respectful manner in which this collaboration was built is evidenced by both parties being flexible to change and tweaking things when they weren’t working. This could only happen because there was a high level of trust between partners and a shared understanding of program deliverables and desired outcomes."

Administrative support has also been key to the success of the program and making best use of psychiatrists' time.

Psychiatrists said their motivations for participating in the program were driven by a desire to contribute to a community of practice - an environment where professionals share experiences, develop/discuss areas of interest and build a sense of community.

SEMPHN looks forward to continuing this successful partnership to provide an important and valuable service to general practitioners and their patients in south east Melbourne.

Thank you to the Alfred Health and Monash Health teams involved in this great work.

"This is a very important service to provide GPs with support for mental health advice, given they see and care for so many people with a mental health diagnosis. I work in an area that doesn't have this service and I can see how helpful it would be to have it Victoria-wide."
Watch a 2 minute video with the Psychiatrist delivering this service, Dr Nicolas Mims.
For more information

For more information and to refer to this service visit SEMPHN's "Free Access to Psychiatric Secondary Consultations for GPs" web page.

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This program and the approach has been integral in addressing the 'missing middle', those with complicated mental health needs that are well enough to be home and not admitted in to hospital, but not well enough to be alone.

Seventy-two individuals were successfully referred with forty-seven clinics each with at least one referral. 

Depression is the most prevalent diagnosis for older people who use SEMPHN-commissioned mental health services

Depression statistics in the SEMPHN region

Anxiety and depression diagnosis in Victoria

Anxiety and depression statistics in the SEMPHN region

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