Mental Health Services

The Hon. C.M. SCRIVEN (15:02): Supplementary: how many of these additional mental health care beds will be in regional areas?

The Hon. S.G. WADE (Minister for Health and Wellbeing) (15:02): The government continues to monitor the level of inpatient need in country areas. The area that is often raised with me is in relation to Port Lincoln. There is a provision in that hospital for beds that have been designed as potential mental health inpatient beds to be activated. The advice I have received from the local health network is that that is not the best way to deliver mental health care in that network at this time. There are inpatient units in country South Australia and we continue, of course, to have partnerships in the sense that Glenside does provide inpatient accommodation for South Australians from country areas.