A crisis resolution team will be reaching out to people with severe mental health difficulties at their homes, preventing unnecessary hospitalisations, Chris Fearne said on Thursday. 

The team, made up of two psychiatrists, eight specialised nurses and one psychologist, will be based at a newly-renovated building close to Mount Carmel Hospital. They will travel to people’s homes and provide mental health care on-site. 

“Every day, nine to 10 people are admitted to Mount Carmel because they’ve suffered a mental health crisis,” the Health Minister told the media on Thursday. 

“At least a third of these, if caught early and given the right treatment at home, can avoid having to be admitted to hospital entirely.”

Fearne said the patient population at Mount Carmel - which at times has hosted even 800 people - had now dipped to below 200. 

“We want to focus our attention on providing care and support to patients who do not need to be hospitalised from Mount Carmel while allowing them to live in the community,” he said. 

Addressing the same press conference, consultant psychiatrist David Cassar said that over the last three years the number of patients at Mount Carmel Hospital had been reduced by half. 

“Since March of last year we move 9,000 patients from Mater Dei Hospital to community clinics, meaning services for patients who need specialised care have become more accessible,” he said.

"We've now established this new team to provide services in a time of crisis, where we tend to see a lot of suffering. We will be able to respond to people within 24 hours and provide care for them for a number of weeks to mitigate their crisis."