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Queensland's Chief Psychiatrist has commissioned a review of the Gold Coast Child and Youth Mental Health Service. John Reilly announced the review on Saturday, which he said came after the suicide of two young people in the past five years who had received care at the service based at Robina Hospital. "It's important to note that this is a service improvement review, not an investigation into any deaths or individual cases," Dr Reilly said. The review has been ordered in accordance with the Mental Health Act 2016, after a request by Gold Coast Hospital and Health Service chief executive Ron Calvert. "It will focus on the model of care currently adopted by the service and identify any opportunities to improve the care provided and mitigate preventable harm," Dr Reilly said. The service provides care to more than 260 "consumers". One of the busiest services in the state A four-person team, led by experienced youth psychiatrist Paul Denborough, who has held peak health roles in Victoria, will assess the capacity and quality of care pathways of the service, as well as identify areas for improvement. Dr Reilly will determine whether the findings can be publicly released once the review is completed. The announcement of a review came after an ABC investigation into the way Queensland Health's Gold Coast mental health service had responded when its mental health patients died by suicide in the community. The service is one of the busiest in the state, dealing with numerous complex mental health patients — including many seriously ill teenagers at extreme risk of suicide. Former Queensland Health staff, patients' families, advocates and experts in patient safety and mental health have raised concerns with the ABC about whether the service followed all appropriate official policies and procedures, and if the best possible care was being provided. Among the concerns raised with the ABC was whether official departmental investigations into patient deaths were exhaustive and had led to failures, mistakes or problems being exposed and improved. The state's health department and Gold Coast Hospital and Health Service have vigorously rejected claims that it failed to appropriately respond to patient deaths, or there were any significant problems with the treatment being provided. Queensland Health has previously told the ABC it used the most appropriate methodology to review a clinical incident and respond to people at risk of suicide and when incidents occurred. A Gold Coast Hospital and Health Service spokesperson said the nature of mental health was often highly complex. "The tireless work of dedicated clinicians to provide high-quality and safe care is paramount," they said. "Despite best efforts, clinical incidents can occur."
