Growing strain on emergency departments in Victoria
Access to timely mental health care in emergency departments across Victoria is deteriorating, with Dandenong Hospital recording the lowest transfer rate to a dedicated mental health bed. Official statistics from the Victorian Agency for Health Information show that, in the April–June 2025 quarter, only 4 per cent of adult ED patients were moved to a mental health bed within eight hours. This stands in stark contrast to the 44 per cent state average and raises concerns about the system’s ability to respond to acute crises in the community.
The figure highlights a broader pattern of pressure on public hospitals, where mental health services have been stretched by rising demand and insufficient funding for psychosocial supports outside hospital walls. As patients and families navigate long waits in EDs, the consequences extend beyond the ED doors, influencing anxiety, homelessness risk, and overall well-being.
Why community support is seen as a critical solution
Advocates argue that bolstering psychosocial support services in Greater Dandenong and surrounding areas could prevent many crises from escalating to the point of hospital admission. The not-for-profit Mental Illness Fellowship of Australia (MIFA) estimates that about 460,000 people lack access to essential community-based supports for their conditions, with projections suggesting this gap could widen unless targeted funding and planning are enacted.
According to MIFA’s CEO, Tony Stevenson, a joint federal–state funding plan is needed to expand psychosocial support in the community. He emphasises that trained support workers can help people live independently, maintain housing, secure employment, foster social inclusion, and navigate daily living challenges—reducing both the frequency and duration of hospital presentations for mental health issues.
The lived experience behind the data
Personal stories underpin the statistics. A local resident, Noelene, described waiting up to 12 hours in the Dandenong ED years ago while accompanying a daughter dealing with severe anxiety, depression, complex PTSD, borderline personality disorder, and ADHD. She noted that the experience of waiting compounds anxiety, and that adequate community care could have preempted the crisis. Her daughter, now 24, has benefited from the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) and its support workers, reducing the need for ED visits over time. This illustrates how effective, ongoing community supports can alter trajectories for people living with complex mental health conditions.
What the data from AMA and current capacity shows
Beyond state lines, a 2023–24 Australian Medical Association (AMA) public hospital report card highlighted alarming trends: patients waited on average seven hours in ED before hospital admission in 2022–23, with mental health wards operating under severe strain. The report described “record high waiting times” and “record low per-person bed capacity,” noting that mental health beds were among the tightest bottlenecks, with just 27 beds per 100,000 Australians—the lowest figure on record. An estimated 10 per cent of patients waited more than 23 hours in EDs, underscoring the systemic bottlenecks that ripple into community care and discharge planning.
Policy calls and the way forward
Mental health advocates are urging governments to chart a clear course: increase funding for psychosocial support services, strengthen connections between hospital systems and community programs, and invest in home- and community-based care that can reduce avoidable ED presentations. The goal is not to divert care from EDs but to ensure people receive appropriate, timely support in the most suitable setting, which can prevent hospital admissions and shorten ED stays when crisis care is necessary.
What Monash Health and partners say
Monash Health, which operates Dandenong Hospital, was contacted for comment on the current wait times data and the potential impact of expanded community services. As the system debates solutions, the consistent message from clinicians, patient advocates, and community organisations is a need for a robust, adequately funded, and well-coordinated mental health strategy that bridges hospital care and community support.
World Mental Health Day on Friday, October 10, provides an opportunity to spotlight these gaps and press for action. MIFA emphasises that stronger links between community services and hospital systems can help people facing mental health challenges to remain well, supported, and independent, reducing unnecessary time in hospital and the risk of homelessness or poverty.
