Stephen Psaila-Savona A/Director, HaDSCO Learning from mental health complaints in WA

Legislation HaDSCO operates under the following legislative frameworks: Health and Disability Services (Complaints) Act 1995 Part 19 of the Mental Health Act 2014 Part 6 of the Disability Services Act 1993 Other impacting legislation: Health Practitioner Regulation National Law (WA)2010 Carers Recognition Act 2004 Declared Places (Mentally Impaired Accused) Act 2015

Who are we HaDSCO offers a free, impartial and confidential resolution service for complaints relating to health, disability and mental health services in WA Assessment, conciliation and investigation of complaints Education and training in the prevention and resolution of complaints Empowering users and providers to collaboratively improve health, disability and mental health services

What we do to manage complaints by conciliation, negotiated settlement or investigation to review and identify the causes of complaints to provide advice and make recommendations for service improvement to educate users and providers about complaint handling procedures to inquire into broader issues of health, disability and mental health care arising from complaints received to work in collaboration with users and providers to improve health, mental health and disability services

Who can make a complaint? A complaint may be made by the consumer or by someone else on their behalf, such as a parent or carer. HaDSCO generally cannot deal with complaints when:  they are trivial, vexatious or without substance  they are more than two years old  they are not made by a user or their representative  they are not confirmed in writing  reasonable attempts have not been made to resolve the matter  issues have already been determined by a court or registration board.  Commonwealth funded services

Who can complaints be about? Complaints can include: Public and private hospitals Private psychiatric hostels Non-government services Community mental health services Psychiatrists Mental health nurses Psychologists Allied health professionals

What can be complained about? Complaints can include allegations that a mental health, health or disability service provider has acted unreasonably:  by refusing to deliver a service  by providing a service that should not have been provided  in the manner of providing a service  by denying or restricting the consumer’s access to records  by charging an excessive fee  Breached confidentiality  by failing to deal with a complaint effectively  by failing to comply with the Carers Charter  by failing to comply with relevant Standards and Principles.

Complaints overview HaDSCO closed 2,434 complaints in Out of jurisdiction Complaints 11% Health Complaints 72% Mental Health Complaints 14% Disability Complaints 3%

Mental Health Complaint Trends

Mental Health Complaint Trends

Treatment

Communication & Information

Medication

Mental Health Data Collection Project

Key Actions 1.Mental health complaints data 2.Streamlined complaints process and networks 3.Coordination of multi-agency complaints 4.Public Awareness 5.Workshops 6.Complaint Standards

Mental Health Complaint Standards ​​​​1. Access and cultural awareness ​​​​2. ​Effective and efficient complaints process ​3.​​​ Impartiality and fairness 4. ​​​​Timeliness​ 5. Professional and ethical behaviour 6. ​​​​​Confidentiality and privacy of information 7. Safety, risk and rights 8. System improvement and coordination

Thank you Resources available Resources available via online hub Collaborate & Learn:  Resources page with case studies and other useful tools relating to the management of complaints.

Thank you! Contact us: Complaints and enquiries: (08) Reception: ​(08) Country​ free call: ​ TTY (people with voice or hearing impairment): (08) Fax:​ ​(08) Office hours:​ Monday - Friday 8.30am pm