Mental health patients 'stuck in emergency wards'

It has been revealed eight mental health patients spent a week in the emergency department of Royal Perth Hospital during the last financial year and one psychiatric patient was there for eight days.

The figures, which have been tabled in State Parliament, reveal mental health patients are becoming stranded in the Emergency Department.

The Opposition's spokeswoman on mental health, Helen Morton, alleges mental health patients in Emergency Departments are being sedated and chemically restrained.

"There is no way that these people could be staying in a place like Royal Perth Hospital without that," she said.

"It is a term that is commonly used, so this is a widespread, state-wide problem of patients not being able to access secure mental health beds.

"This is the only way that they can keep them in those environments."