GOVERNMENT SEPARATE ADULTS AND CHILDREN RECEIVING INPATIENT MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES

Government announced Thursday that it would be taking steps to move the adults receiving inpatient mental health care from the Anthony S. Eden Hospital (formerly George Town Hospital) to the Poinciana Rehabilitation Centre (PRC), allowing the creation of a dedicated mental health ward to cater exclusively for children.

This decision follows eight weeks of focused work led by the Honourable Katherine Ebanks-Wilks, Minister for Health, Environment and Sustainability, who made it clear from the outset that healthcare reform would be a priority of this administration.

“Mental health has for too long been underfunded, undervalued, and fragmented across our system,” said Minister Ebanks-Wilks. “Once taking office, it quickly became evident to me that an urgent solution was needed to separate the adult and children receiving inpatient mental health services. My Ministry team and I have spent the last few weeks looking at a wide variety of options that would allow for a dedicated space for children at Anthony S. Eden Hospital. We deemed the current situation as unacceptable and every other interim option presented to us would take over year to implement. We have taken the decision to transfer the adult mental health inpatients to the underutilised PRC as this offers much a faster solution to creating separate and dedicated spaces for the two patient groups” said Minister Ebanks-Wilks.

The Honourable Isaac Rankine, Minister for Social Development and Innovation welcomes these changes “Creating a dedicated mental health ward at Anthony S. Eden Hospital for children will have an immediate positive impact by facilitating the right care, in safe spaces for children and adults respectively in a more appropriate way. Doing this helps both populations receive better and more tailored support.”

The Ministry had been planning to make this announcement at a later date. However, the Government has moved up the announcement in order to reassure the public that decisive steps are being taken in light of recent allegations of a disturbing incident involving a minor child receiving inpatient mental health care.

“This transition is just the first step in a broader reform agenda which includes improving regulatory oversight, preventative care and creating a cohesive and modern mental health system that meets the needs of every age group,” the Minister concluded.

HSA statement regarding mental health media coverage

The Health Services Authority (HSA), as a healthcare institution, is legally and ethically bound by strict confidentiality protocols, to ensure the privacy and dignity of our patients. The recent media coverage regarding a highly sensitive matter currently under investigation by the appropriate authorities is being taken very seriously. Without diminishing the seriousness of the matter, the HSA would like to remind the public of the far-reaching consequences of unverified statements. These include reputational harm to innocent parties, undue distress to families, patients, and healthcare professionals, and undermines public trust in essential services.

We understand that members of the public have questions or concerns on the matter. While we are not at liberty to share any information at this time, be assured that we are working closely with all relevant authorities and stakeholders.

The overwhelming increases in mental health cases have created tremendous strain on all of our mental health facilities. Overall demand for our in-patient mental health services has increased exponentially since 2021. Adolescent admissions have increased consistently from 7 in 2021 to 36 in 2024. Based on admission to date, we anticipate over 50 adolescent admissions in 2025. Similarly, all adolescent outpatient mental health services have seen an increase of 50% in demand for the same period.

To address the increased overall demand on mental health services, HSA expanded the unit to accommodate 3 additional in-patient beds, enacted 24-hour security presence, expanded electronic monitoring and increased support staff to enhance patient safety. Recently HSA Management and Board identified the need to develop a purpose-built facility which has been supported in principle by the Minister of Health.