More than 200 NSW public psychiatrists resign

More than 200 of NSW's 295 public psychiatrists handed in their resignation in December. Lifeline 13 11 14. Video by AAP

Transcript

00:00We're here today to hear from some of our ASMOP members about the intending resignation

00:07of over 200 senior SAR specialists within the New South Wales health system,

00:12which is going to put the health system, not just mental health, but the whole health system

00:18under enormous strain. My name is Lex and I'm a doctor in Western Sydney.

00:22I've worked there for about 15 years. ED is the canary in the cage of the health system,

00:30we're the front line, and we've already had issues retaining staff and overwhelming demand

00:35for our services. Our friends in psychiatry have had a significant issue with their workforce,

00:42over one third of the mental health positions have been unfilled and this has been known about

00:47the last 15 months. We're taking the opportunity to have a look around the New South Wales

00:52Statewide Emergency Mental Health Operations Centre, that is here at New South Wales Health

00:58HQ. That's one of the contingency measures we've put in place to manage the impact of

01:02mass resignation on the mental health system. Anybody who is experiencing a mental health

01:07problem or is caring for someone who is experiencing a mental health problem

01:11should not hesitate to reach out to our services. We are doing everything that we can

01:17to maintain our services to a high standard and good quality.