Queensland’s Health Bill – ECT

Last week I spoke on Queensland’s new Health Bill and outlined some concerns I have with the growing use of ‘Electroconvulsive therapy’ (ECT) on patients under ‘involuntary orders’, especially children.

The Member for Greenslopes, Joseph Kelly, a former nurse, took exception to my comments, accusing me of getting my information from “4-Chan” and smearing me as a ‘conspiracy theorist’.

At one point, he even likened the use of ECT treatments to taking a Panadol.

Is Mr Kelly aware that the use of ECT on children and adults without consent, has been widely condemned by medical experts and human rights organisations worldwide?

Just last year, WHO issued a guidance saying that ECT should only be used by adults capable of giving consent, and that its use on minors should be “eliminated by legislation”.

A UN Report on Torture and the Inhuman treatment of people with disabilities, called for:

“an absolute ban on all forced and non-consensual medical interventions against persons with disabilities, including the non-consensual administration of psychosurgery, electroshock and mind-altering drugs”.

Since 2000, the use of ECT has declined everywhere except Australia, where it rose 85% between 2006 and 2015.

In Queensland, it rose 91%.

From 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021, 10,955 people underwent ECT therapy in Queensland – more than any other State or territory in the country.

Compare that to the 1,600 people treated in the UK and Ireland, who together have a population of over 72 million.

Under Queensland’s Mental Health Act, a child or adult can be locked up in a psychiatric facility and forcibly treated, including with psychiatric drugs, electroshock, restraint and seclusion.

Parents have no power to stop it and can even be prevented from visiting their child or speaking to them on the phone, while they are involuntarily detained in a facility.

This also applies to adults.

In 2020/21 there were 23,800 involuntary admissions in Qld.

There were 11,765 appeals made against these orders, of which the Mental Health Tribunal revoked just 119.

In 2018-19, Queensland’s former Public Advocate, Mary Burgess, expressed serious concerns over the long-term safety of mental health patients who were subjected to involuntary ECT treatments.

She also criticised the lack of transparency around Mental Health Tribunal operations. As has the Queensland Law Society.

The Health Ombudsman’s annual reports show a 713% increase in the number of complaints against mental health service organisations in Queensland between 2015 and 2020.

Maybe they are all conspiracy theorists too!

Stephen Andrew MP’s speech on Queensland’s Health and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2021 – excerpt of his comments on the use of ECT treatments on minors without consent – Also excerpts from the Speech by Joseph Kelly MP, Member for Greenslopes, in which he makes an extraordinary personal attack against Mr Andrew, smearing him as a “conspiracy theorist”.