The Eastern Cape department of health has published its R120m tender to outsource chronic mental healthcare in the province – and has put emphasis on the reintegration of mental health patients in their communities.

Apart from chronic care‚ service providers have also been asked to tender for community-based initiatives to achieve this.

Seven-hundred adult and 180 paediatric mental health patients are now being cared for in Life Esidimeni centres in Kirkwood and Bethelsdorp.

The tender documents show that the department is also seeking to distribute beds for chronic mental health patients across the province if possible.

Long-term patients are currently housed at the 700-bed Life Esidimeni Kirkwood facility and the 180 children at Life Esidimeni’s Algoa Frail Care Centre in Bethelsdorp.

Provincial health spokesperson Lwandile Sicwetsha declined to elaborate on any of the information in the tender documents‚ saying this would compromise the tender process.

The documents state that the capacity of mental health services still needs to be developed to meet the demands of the province.

-The Herald