Safe haven with peer support a huge step forward for acute mental health care

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Gosford Hospital has officially opened a Safe Haven to provide an alternative to the Emergency Department for those seeking urgent mental health support.

By Jacquelene pearson

NSW Minister for Mental Health, The Hon Rose Jackson MP, officially opened the new Safe Haven within the Gosford Hospital precinct on Tuesday, November 7.

The informal and welcoming centre is in a discrete location outside the main hospital building and is one of 19 Safe Havens operating in NSW.

Minister Jackson was joined by Member for Gosford Liesl Tesch, Member for The Entrance, David Mehan, Professor Donald MacLellan, Board Chair, Central Coast Local Health District (CCLHD) and Scott McLachlan, Chief Executive, CCLHD to officially open Gosford Safe Haven.

Although one of the newest Safe Havens in NSW, the Gosford centre is also one of the busiest, having already provided support to over 300 consumers within its first few months of operation.

The concept is that the Safe Haven is a support centre for anyone navigating a mental health crisis, according to Scott McLachlan who said the Safe Haven was providing opportunities for a multi-layer service that could work with clients, carers and families to create a safe space and resource those with mental illness to achieve successful management of their health.

Minister Jackson said she wished to acknowledge the peer support workers “who make the place work”.

The Safe Haven has been co-designed by those peer support workers who have their own lived experience of mental health crises. Their contribution to the design and operation of the Safe Haven means it is a place that people want to visit.

Those needing the service truly believe they are cared for and that people want to help them.

Two peer support workers spoke of their roles at the official launch of the Gosford Safe Haven.

A former police detective with experience of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) explained that the “voices of people with lived experience are the voices for those in crisis” and are able to provide comfort and solace.

The peer support workers explained that some of the encounters in the new Safe Haven had been “aggressive” with medical alarms and calls to triple O but the presence of peer support workers was valuable and, at times, heart-warming.

However, one support worker explained that they were “regularly fighting for validation in what we offer”.

“We need teams who can address the human aspect of mental health…We stand in the vulnerabilities of our own experience… we drop the armour.

“As peers we drop the guard and it takes skill.”

Mental Health Peer Support workers have been officially part of the health care system for 25 years this year but “It’s really hard some days” according to one of the workers, with vicarious trauma and limits to career progression posing particular barriers.

If you are experiencing mental health concerns, please contact one of the following support services: