As of 1:06 p.m. Tuesday the Burke County sheriff's office had spent six full days accompanying an involuntary commitment patient in the emergency room at Grace Hospital. That evening, a deputy and the patient were still in the emergency room.
Sheriff John McDevitt said that's the longest wait the department has experienced yet, and with budget cuts across the state, he doesn't see an end in sight for these long waits that place a strain on the patient, law enforcement and the mental health system.
North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson Mark Van Sciver said once hospitals reach their capacity, they cannot take on more patients because it puts both the patients and staff at risk.
"What happens in those situations is patients may be diverted to community beds that have been established throughout the state," Van Sciver said.
Van Sciver said an increase in substance abuse issues, which can accompany mental illnesses, has led to the increase in patients seeking services, further limiting the number of beds available.
"It's a question of getting more community beds," Van Sciver said.
McDevitt agreed, saying more beds and more funding are necessary to cut down on increasing waiting periods.
Broughton Hospital has "bent over backwards" to help, McDevitt said, but the hospital's "hands are full" when all the beds are filled and another 16 patients are on the waiting list.
There aren't any beds available at Grace Hospital either, and so far no beds are available across the state, McDevitt said.
Deputies must accompany the patient around-the-clock, which is a "drain on our man power," McDevitt said.
Attempts are made to use off-duty deputies, but if one cannot be found, that means one less deputy on the road, McDevitt said.
"The real issue to me and the real issue that I think is being missed here is, six days ago this patient needed some mental health care," McDevitt said. "She certainly hasn't received any mental health care looking at a deputy."
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