Psychiatrists and other mental health professionals across Australia and New Zealand are closely watching the workforce crisis that is currently playing out in New South Wales and are looking for more information.

We recognise the dilemmas that many RANZCP members in NSW are facing in the context of working in an under-resourced public system, a private system that is more difficult to access due to workforce and funding issues and the great challenges in providing accessible, timely and equitable care to the community.

The resignation of NSW Health psychiatrists has drawn significant media attention, and the RANZCP appreciates the collective effort of the many NSW members who have spoken out directly about the impacts on the community and patients. This has helped to shine a light on the issues, raise public awareness and ensure that the workforce shortages are rightly understood as a patient safety and public health crisis.

Over the past few years the RANZCP has been consistently raising the issues and members’ concerns with government, along with solutions. The dire public psychiatry workforce crisis in NSW was highlighted in our report, The NSW mental health care system on the brink: Evidence from the frontline.

We have raised critical issues such as staff specialist vacancies, the over-reliance on a locum workforce, bidding wars between Local Health Districts and locum agencies driving up VMO rates, and trainees being paid as residents not registrars. We have also made it clear there are significant safety concerns for both patients and the psychiatry workforce who are working in an unsafe environment.

The RANZCP remains concerned about the impact of psychiatrist shortages not only in the workforce, but also on clinical supervision, trainee wellbeing and trainee workloads, particularly after-hours rosters. NSW is responsible for training 32% of new psychiatrists in Australia and training occurs almost exclusively in the public system.

The RANZCP’s Education team is also working closely with Directors of Training and Health Services in NSW to identify any hot spots and to ensure accreditation standards for training posts are maintained. Site visits are being undertaken where needed, to discuss emerging training and accreditation risks and implications.

Resolving this situation is part of a whole of system issue. We need a mental health system in NSW that is sustainable, provides high quality care, and training that meets accreditation standards. This needs a plan that not only retains psychiatrists but also attracts doctors to train in NSW.

The RANZCP is thankful to the many psychiatrists and trainees in NSW, the College’s NSW Branch Committee, Branch Training Committee and central College staff who are working so hard at the moment on behalf of our colleagues and our patients.