The ACT Government has accepted all recommendations of the report from the Inquiry into Legislative, Workplace Governance and Clinical Frameworks at the Dhulwa Mental Health Unit, Emma Davidson, ACT Minister for Mental Health, announced this week.
The independent report, published in December, described Dhulwa, the ACT low to medium security facility for people involved with the criminal justice system, as “dysfunctional”.
Last year, nurses reported 100 physical assaults by patients, including for 13 days in a row in February; nurses could not provide proper care for unwell patients due to government failings; and the work culture was “rotten”, Matthew Daniel, secretary of the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Foundation (ANMF) ACT Branch, said. WorkSafe ACT issued a prohibition and improvement notice over one incident the same week a nurse was maimed in another incident. One nurse likened working there to being “sent into the killing fields”.
Canberra Health Services and the ACT Government played down the ANMF’s concerns, but eventually agreed to an inquiry into workplace safety.
- ACT’s Dhulwa mental health unit ‘dysfunctional’, report finds (2 December 2022)
- Inquiry at Dhulwa facility needed, nurses’ union says (6 April 2022)
- Danger and desperation at Dhulwa Mental Health Unit (7 April 2022)
- Dhulwa management has acted swiftly, CHS says (7 April 2022)
- ANMF claims Dhulwa nurses unable to provide proper care (8 April 2022)
- Nurses repeat call for inquiry into work safety at Dhulwa (20 April 2022)
- ACT government finally agrees to Dhulwa Mental Health Unit inquiry (2 May 2022)
- Chair appointed to Dhulwa inquiry, reference terms revealed (31 May 2022)
The inquiry made 25 recommendations, focusing on clinical care and service delivery, work health and safety, workplace relations, governance, leadership, culture, and engagement.
All recommendations will be implemented by March 2024.
Implementing the 25 recommendations will help Dhulwa to manage clinical and WHS risks, make the facility safer, and improve clinical care, Ms Davidson said.
“The ACT Government is committed to providing a safe environment for staff and people receiving care in Dhulwa, and to ensuring the delivery of high-quality clinical care that meets the therapeutic needs of Canberrans who need forensic mental health inpatient care,” Ms Davidson said.
“When I received the Dhulwa Inquiry Report … I said that the ACT Government would take the recommendations seriously, and was committed to ensuring long term and sustainable improvements at Dhulwa.
“By accepting every recommendation, without qualification, we have demonstrated that commitment, and we are already working on their implementation. We are working with Canberra Health Services, representatives of staff, and of patients and carers, to make Dhulwa the place it should be.”
The first recommendation was for independent oversight of the implementation of the recommendations to ensure that change occurs at Dhulwa, and that the change is effected as soon as reasonably practicable.
To that end, an independent oversight board will be set up, led by Barbara Deegan, the chair of the inquiry. The board will report to Ms Davidson.
Ms Deegan is a former Commissioner of the Fair Work Commission and Commissioner of the Tasmanian Industrial Commission.
“I’m pleased to be able to continue my involvement with the Dhulwa work and look forward to working with the other members of the Independent Board to provide the ACT Government and the wider Canberra community with the assurance that the recommendations have been implemented effectively,” Ms Deegan said.
“I commend Minister Davidson for her commitment to the Dhulwa Inquiry and ensuring that it will bring about lasting change.”
The Board will also have representatives from the ANMF, forensic mental health nurses, Carers ACT, Mental Health Consumers, and the Health Services Commissioner. Canberra Health Services and the Office of Industrial Relations and Workforce Strategy will attend the board.
“There’s a wide range of expertise on the Board, and it will make such a strong contribution to ensuring that the implementation of recommendations is sustainable and that they stick over the long term,” Ms Davidson said.
The ANMF thanked Ms Deegan and the Board of Inquiry for the “comprehensive and cogent” Report, and welcomed the ACT Government’s decision to accept and implement all 25 Report Recommendations.
“The Report was unequivocal – the implementation of the Inquiry recommendations will require a commitment to change, and a commensurate investment of both time and resourcing,” an ANMF spokesperson said.
“The ANMF considers that the change process must continue to be bound by independence, and the ACT Government’s decision to establish an independent board to oversee the implementation of the recommendations constitutes a sound approach.”
