Mental Health Services
We provide comprehensive care and support for individuals experiencing mental health issues.
We treat patients with a wide range of mental health conditions, offering specialist assessment and care in a hospital setting.
Our services encompass both community and inpatient settings, ensuring that patients receive the appropriate level of care tailored to their needs, through a collaboration of state and federal government agencies, community-managed organisations, and private providers.
What we do
Services at the RAH include a 40-bed specialist acute mental health unit, including Acute Care (AC) beds, Psychiatric Intensive Care (PIC) beds, and Short Stay (SS) beds.
The unit is designed for increased observation and separation of high-risk patients, with internal courtyards providing secure, private outdoor spaces. The target group is individuals aged 18 to 65 with suspected or confirmed mental health diagnoses.
Where to find us
The Acute Mental Health unit located at 2G, Level 2, at the Royal Adelaide Hospital. Adjacent to the emergency department.
Who we are
Mental health is a multidisciplinary team comprising medical specialists, nurses and allied health workers.
Learn more about the different roles within our team.
The Consultation Liaison (CL) service at the RAH provides psychiatric assessment and treatment for patients in non-mental health units. The team establishes treatment plans, offers inpatient care support, and refers patients to suitable services.
Carer consultants have direct experience caring for family members with mental illness and are available to support families and carers.
The ED mental health team at the RAH assess and manage patients presenting to Emergency Departments with mental health complaints. They support consumers aged 18-65 with suspected or confirmed mental health diagnoses, aligning with NEAT guidelines for assessment, care planning, and Transfer of Care (ToC) timeframes.
A new mental health early assessment nurse based in the ED will quickly assess patients to determine their need for mental health services, supporting them onto the right clinical pathway to progress their care.
This is a 12 week trial from January 2025 of an additional resource, which aims to see patients moved through the ED faster to receive appropriate care.
BIOS offers specialist assessment and support for emotional distress, anxiety, self-harm, and suicidal ideation. It aims to prevent Emergency Department representation by providing time-limited interventions for individuals in crisis.
Social work services in the RAH ED have been introduced on weekends, with the aim of supporting patients and clinicians, addressing psychosocial barriers to discharge plus creating community pathways.
You need a referral from a GP or medical practitioner to access this service.
Once your referral has been received it will be triaged according to clinical urgency.
If your referral is accepted, you will either:
- receive a letter, phone call or text message confirming your appointment time, date and location
- receive a letter confirming you have been waitlisted for an appointment.
If the referral is declined, your GP or referring medical practitioner will be notified.
Outpatient services
Find out information about specialist outpatient appointments, how to be referred, plus information when attending an outpatient clinic.
Your outpatient appointment
Contact us to:
- change your appointment time
- cancel your appointment
- find out triage status
- general outpatient enquiries.
If you need to cancel or change your appointment time, let us know as soon as possible.
Mental health services
Get information on mental health services outside the RAH including the SA Health Mental Triage Service, Urgent Mental Health Care Centre and 24/7 helplines.
We accept GP and specialist referrals to this service.
eReferrals are preferred.
Use the Clinical Prioritisation Criteria (CPC) as a referral guide.
To ensure timely triage, include all demographic and clinical details.
The service triages referrals according to clinical urgency.
Urgent and serious referrals
If you are concerned about the appointment being delayed or if the patient's condition is deteriorating, contact the registrar to discuss.
Registrars are on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Patients requiring immediate assessment should be sent directly to the Emergency Department.
Discharge guidelines
Patients whose medical condition has stabilised or resolved, and where no further appointment has been made, will be formally discharged.
If medical assessment is required again, a new referral should be made explaining the reason.