Download page as PDFThe Chief Psychiatrist is an independent statutory officer with responsibility for overseeing the standards of care provided by mental health services across WA.
This role is a key component of the regulatory and clinical governance systems in place to ensure the people of Western Australia are provided with safe, high quality mental health care.
The Chief Psychiatrist’s mission is to ensure that all Western Australians receive the highest standard of mental health treatment and care. The Chief Psychiatrist reports to WA Parliament through the Minister for Mental Health and provides advice to the Minister about the provision of mental health services.
The Chief Psychiatrist also has the following statutory responsibilities:
- Oversight of treatment and care of mental health patients
- Publishing standards and guidelines
- Monitoring compliance with standards
- Receiving and reviewing notifiable incidents
- Monitoring use of restrictive practice
- Authorising mental health practitioners
- Authorising hospitals to admit involuntary patients
- Approving mental health services to perform electroconvulsive therapy
- Approving forms
The current Chief Psychiatrist is Dr Nathan Gibson, who was appointed to the role for a five-year term in 2013, and subsequently reappointed in 2018 and 2023.