Audit Uncovers Possible Lapse in Elderly Suicide Prevention 

By Christopher Knaus, The Canberra Times

October 30, 2010

Australia

ACT Health may be failing to address the risk of suicide among at-risk elderly mental health patients, a report by the ACT Auditor-General has shown.

The performance audit, which was issued yesterday, found that Mental Health ACT had failed to conduct mandatory suicide risk assessments for 48 per cent of elderly mental health patients who had exhibited suicidal tendencies, expressed a wish to die, or committed self-harm.

The audit examined 21 patients who were identified as at-risk of suicide, and found that eight patients had received no suicide risk assessment at all, while two patients had only received partial suicide risk assessments.

The findings breached the ACT mental health policy, which dictated that all patients demonstrating suicidal behaviour undergo a risk assessment and be attributed a suicide risk rating.

ACT Minister for Health and acting Chief Minister Katy Gallagher said she had been assured that all of the suicide risk assessments had actually taken place.

She said the audit results reflected a failure to properly process paperwork and to keep proper documentation, rather than a failure to actually conduct the assessments.

''I've spoken to the head of Mental Health ACT on Monday about this report,'' Ms Gallagher said.

''He assured me that the work was being done but [was not necessarily] able to be identified through the audit processes, which is really a check through documents and policies and processes,'' she said.

Shadow health spokesman Jeremy Hanson said the results were alarming.

Mr Hanson said the audit demonstrated that older Canberrans were currently falling through the cracks of the territory's mental health system.

''I am particularly alarmed by what appears to be a breakdown in some aspects of suicide prevention strategies for older persons and a failure to implement policy and guidelines for suicide prevention,'' he said. ''It is a concern when we are talking about something as serious as person taking their life, that the policies and guidelines that are in place are not always implemented to monitor or assess an individual's risk.

''I would hope ACT Health and the Government take these recommendations seriously and look to improve the current level of service,'' he said.

Mr Hanson said demand for mental health services by older people had increased by more than 400per cent since 2000-01, and that there was still much work to do in catering for this demand.

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