Shellharbour Hospital: Security fears raised after fatal electric guitar attack on patient

A New South Wales MP has demanded an urgent briefing from the State Government on the state of mental health services and security at Shellharbour Hospital, following revelations by the ABC yesterday.

Member for Shellharbour Anna Watson said she had written to Health Minister Jillian Skinner asking for information on the adequacy of patient care and patient and staff safety at the Shellharbour Hospital's Eloura West unit.

Ms Watson said she saw a former patient of the hospital last week, who complained about a lack of care and treatment at the facility.

"The complaint was about staffing and that they weren't in control of the facility or the treatment. The patient was in fear and says she will never ever go there again," she said.

"There are obviously a range of stakeholders who are raising serious concerns about the operation of the facility and these concerns must be addressed."

The call comes after the ABC revealed at least three former psychiatric patients of the hospital had died in the past three years after being released from the facility. This follows an alleged murder inside the same hospital last month.

Nurses have told the ABC they fear not only for patient safety, but also their own. Ms Skinner's office has been contacted for comment.

The family of the man who was murdered at the hospital is also demanding answers from health authorities.

Shellharbour hospital has 'a lot to answer for'

On July 31, Joseph Gumley was allegedly attacked with his electric guitar by fellow patient Paul Hindmarsh.

The community of Ulladulla last week buried Mr Gumley, who died in a room he shared with Hindmarsh at the Eloura West ward.

Mr Gumley's mother, Betty Gumley, told the ABC that the hospital had "a lot to answer for".

According to a police statement of facts, Mr Gumley and Hindmarsh shared a room in the Eloura West high dependency observation ward.

Hindmarsh, 31, had been a patient there for nine months and was suffering from schizophrenia and drug and alcohol dependency. He was on a waiting list to be housed in a permanent facility.

Mr Gumley had been there for three months and was being treated for schizophrenia and alcoholism.

About 8:00am, a staffer went to tell the men that breakfast was ready. He noticed the door was ajar and discovered Mr Gumley lying on his bed with a blanket covering his head. He saw blood spatter on the wall and pulled the blanket down to discover a blue coloured strap around Mr Gumley's neck.

The police statement says Hindmarsh ran out of the room and later told staff he had "attacked Joe". Police allege Hindmarsh attacked Mr Gumley with his own guitar, causing fatal injuries to his face and head.

Ms Gumley told the ABC she could not understand why her son was placed in the same room with Hindmarsh, who has a history of violent offences.

"They've got a lot to answer for," Mrs Gumley said.

"Why was that chap put in with him? Joe was never a fighter, he'd never fight."

History of violence, deaths linked to Eloura ward

Mr Gumley's violent death was not an isolated case.

In January, the coastal town of Bulli was shocked when a man stabbed his sister to death and then stabbed himself.

The ABC has been told the accused, David Brown and his sister, Therese Brown, were both patients at the Eloura West unit. However, the local health district would not confirm this.

Police allege Brown stabbed Ms Brown, who lived with him, multiple times then stabbed himself in the chest before driving 70 kilometres to Gladesville police station, where he turned himself in.

In April 2012, another former patient - who cannot be named for legal reasons - stabbed himself multiple times in the neck while suffering from psychosis.

And in August 2011, Suzie Onneeglio took a fatal overdose just weeks after being released from the Shellharbour mental health unit.

Her family says she was released to free up a bed in the ward.

Going further back to May 2005, 35-year-old Karen Keresztury died after her own battle with schizophrenia came to a shocking end.

Just weeks before she was released from Shellharbour Hospital, both Keresztury's father and her 12-year-old daughter had pleaded with authorities to keep her in for further treatment.

Keresztury left hospital and set herself on fire in front on her distraught child.

Warning 'someone shall be seriously attacked' before death

Some nurses at the unit say they have been assaulted at work and fear for their safety.

Brett Holmes, from the NSW Nurses and Midwives Association, told the ABC there had been problems at the unit for years.

"We have had incidents over the years in this unit and concerns from our membership about various issues including assaults on our members by patients," Mr Holmes said.

"Our members are concerned that they are given proper management support and supervision, that they're provided with sufficient staff to look after the patients that are admitted to both the units.

"There is confusion about units being called 'high dependency' yet not being recognised for that purpose when it comes to appropriate funding levels to sustain staffing that's needed when you have very close observation requirements of patients."

Mr Holmes said the health department was investigating the circumstances surrounding Mr Gumley's death.

"Our members have been put under a great deal of scrutiny around this incident," he said.

"We think it's appropriate that there be a proper investigation and we're assisting our members to cooperate with that but we would be very cautious should the investigations look like they're trying to look for scapegoats for what is a tragic situation."

Lorraine Long, from the Medical Error Action Group, said she had received a number of complaints about the Eloura West unit.

The most recent was two weeks before the murder of Mr Gumley, which warned "someone will be seriously attacked soon".

The email, which was sent anonymously, said: "There is a massive alcohol epidemic in Shellharbour and violence is a daily occurrence. The hospital has a Zero Tolerance Policy yet refuses to use the flagging/contract system of violent repeat offenders.

"Many staff have been assaulted, continuously there are incident reports, yet they always lead nowhere. Calls for around the clock security fall on deaf ears. I believe someone shall be seriously attacked soon."

Ms Long said she had received similar emails about mental health care at Shellharbour Hospital over the years.

"It's staff contacting us," Ms Long said.

"They're concerned about safety for the staff, safety for the patients, security breaches, they're filling out incident reports, they're not being attended to.

"One of the things that worries me is why are staff from the Eloura mental health unit contacting the Medical Error Action Group to get something done? It indicates they're not being listened to by the ministry of health.

"It goes back years with the psychiatrist who left and another doctor who left and said, 'I can't work here anymore'. We're not being listened to, [the] health department [is] not interested. But I think staff there are now worried for their personal safety and that is a concern."

Ms Long said nurses were forbidden from speaking publicly about their concerns, under the terms of their employment contracts.

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