The Tribune

By KEILE CAMPBELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kcampbell@tribunemedia.net

CROWDING in the emergency wards at Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre has intensified as bed shortages and lingering COVID-era spacing restrictions continue limiting how quickly patients can be admitted, Sandilands Chief of Staff Dr Srinivas Bodha said yesterday.

He said the institution has yet to fully restore its pre-pandemic capacity, resulting in the loss of available beds.

“That leads to a lot of crowding in the emergency room,” he said. “Some of our wards had been closed during the COVID time, and we are in the process of increasing our bed space, but we do not have the bed space, and patients are waiting longer hours in the ER.”

He said the pressure to move patients through quickly risks premature discharges. “There is a pressure to treat and quickly, get the patients out and patients are not completely well to be going home,” he said. “Eventually, everybody comes here, but the pressure is real.”

Health and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville, speaking at a separate engagement at Sandilands, acknowledged the strain on the psychiatric facility. He highlighted the age of the buildings and of the wider public-hospital network, commending the Public Hospitals Authority for maintaining operations despite the old infrastructure.

“We take a lot of beating because of the aging infrastructure that exists with our tertiary healthcare facilities, but the Public Hospitals Authority is doing some excellent work,” Dr Darville said.

He said staff have kept the institution functioning despite longstanding constraints. “Every time I come to this facility, I am always amazed on how everyone at this institution take pride in this particular facility to ensure that despite its age it is well kept and worthy for employment and to take care of our patients that we are privileged to serve,” he said.

Dr Darville said geriatric services will be expanded to meet the growing needs of families caring for late-stage dementia patients at home.

“It is a small, compact unit,” he said. “We have plans to expand this unit because many of you who are sitting here either have loved ones or know of loved ones, elderly patients who have contributed tremendously to the growth and development of our country suffering from illnesses like dementia.”

He also confirmed broader infrastructure work across the campus, noting renovations on the male ward are complete, while upgrades to the Lignum Vitae unit remain in progress.

Despite the age of its facilities, he described Sandilands as vital to national mental-health care, calling it “a sanctuary for healing of the mind, body and spirit”.

Manpower remains a major challenge, Dr Bodha said.

“Definitely we need a lot of psychologists, but we're always in the process of training the existing manpower and most staff in the SRC — nurses, doctors, psychologists, social workers,” he said. “They're all trained in managing suicide, suicidal patients or even para suicidal patients, so they're quite adept at that.”

He said renovation and restoration works remain essential to stabilise capacity.

“We are in the process of increasing our bed space,” he said, noting that several units remain in need of repairs.

Renovations were recently completed on the long-term rehabilitation programme housed in the Lignum Vitae unit, and refurbishment of the detox unit is expected to follow.

“Some of the wards in the back also have to be renovated,” Dr Bodha said.

Dr Bodha said Sandilands could not shoulder the growing demand alone and called for strengthened community-based support.

“That's what is needed,” he said. “Sandilands just can't deliver things just by itself. It's an institution where we see the worst of the worst cases by definition, but we are out there in the community as much as we can.”

He added that first-responder training would fortify national mental-health preparedness. “In a lot of Western countries, you see policemen, firemen, you know, paramedics, they all train in art of dealing with suicidal patients and para suicides and patients expressing these ideations,” he said. “You know, perhaps we have to change our model or how we approach this disease on the whole may help.”

He said churches and social agencies also have a role, pointing to the churches’ “phenomenal” work and counselling support provided by social services.

Dr Bodha stressed that early intervention is critical. “It all boils down to the person approaching the right person at the right time, and that can make a huge difference between losing somebody or having somebody with us and having a wonderful Christmas next year,” he said.