NORTHERN Health is now home to Victoria’s largest public women’s mental health inpatient unit in the northern catchment area.
Serving consumers who reside within the northern catchment or have presented to a health site (within the catchment) and require hospital admission, Ward Seven underwent a significant refurbishment to enhance the environment to better support recovery-focused care.
The works included upgraded lighting, new flooring, ligature-safe doors, as well as modernised ensuites and toilets to ensure a safer and more therapeutic space for consumers.
The Women’s Mental Health Unit will operate as a 25-bed inpatient unit and will be dedicated to supporting female consumers aged 18 to 65 years requiring hospital-based care due to acute deterioration of current mental illness, or acute exacerbation of chronic mental illness that cannot be managed in the community.
The unit’s workforce includes 59 staff from multiple disciplines including nursing, social work, occupational therapy, consultant psychiatry, psychology, admin, and lived experience.
Executive Director for Mental Health Belinda Scott said the unit was a significant milestone and represented a big step forward in delivering specialised, compassionate, and holistic care for women experiencing acute mental illness.
“Here at Northern Hospital Epping, we have 80 Adult Mental Health beds,” she said.
“This is the largest number of public mental health beds on a single site in Victoria.
“[Ward Seven] creates an opportunity to do things differently, to move towards specialist care not just for women, but for all consumers using Northern Health Mental Health services. This marks the first step in transforming care.
“Now, with a refurbished space and a passionate team, we can provide care that is consumer centred, recovery-oriented and guided by the principles of trauma-informed care and family inclusive practices.”
Ward Seven Project Manager Shaveta Sood said the Women’s Mental Health Unit is ready to respond to the unique needs of women in crisis.
“We look forward to welcoming consumers and providing high-quality, compassionate mental health care in this newly refurbished space,” she said.
“Thank you to everyone involved in making this vision a reality.”
The Northern Hospital is located at 185 Cooper Street, Epping. To make enquiries about Ward Seven, call 8405 8985.
