The mass resignation of NSW public-sector psychiatrists - part of a cohort of more than 200 who previously signalled plans to quit - has exacerbated already stretched services in the nation's largest health system.
Nurses rallied outside Cumberland Hospital on Wednesday, worried both patient and staff safety was at risk as psychiatric patients are being treated in general wards as a result of bed closures.
The NSW Nurses and Midwives Association said more than 60 mental health beds had closed across western Sydney's health network, with one of the state's two mother and baby clinics also shut.
The government has also floated a plan to have other healthcare workers - such as nurses and allied health professionals - take on some of the psychiatrists' workload, a move dismissed by those professionals as "rebranding" rather than a solution.
According to the government, NSW has lost just 15 mental health beds throughout the crisis.
Mental health nurse Frances Cavallaro said the move misled the public and put lives at risk.
"The general ward is not a mental health unit, it's not designed, staffed or resourced to provide the specialised care, supervision and support for mental health patients," she said.
"This decision is not about patient safety, it's about appearances, and the consequences of this will be serious and sometimes fatal."
Psychiatrists have asked for a 25 per cent pay rise which the government says it can't afford. (Alex Mitchell/AAP PHOTOS)
Images leaked from Westmead Hospital, in Sydney's west, last week showed emergency departments wait times nearing four days.
But the government conceded that was not uncommon for the state's health system even before the psychiatrists resigned.
Nick Howson, a mental health clinical nurse consultant, said psychiatric patients being treated in general wards was risky for them, as well as staff members.
"Sometimes people who are unwell occasionally do get violent. ... we as staff need a safe place to retreat to, and general wards where they're attempting to put patients, they do not have that space," he told AAP.
Mental health patients have waited four days for treatment at Westmead Hospital. (Dan Himbrechts/AAP PHOTOS)
"This isn't the fault of the hospital (or) the health district, this is solely on the backs of successive governments who have underfunded health."
Psychiatrists have asked for a 25 per cent pay rise - a figure the NSW government says it cannot afford - claiming that poor working conditions have created the gaping hole in the system.
The mass resignations have exacerbated widespread vacancies in the public system.
"This is about patients in our public health system being turned away … our members have spoken about cracks appearing for a very long time, and our women and our patients with mental health are among the most vulnerable of our community," NSWNMA president O'Bray Smith said.
The government said 46 staff members have rescinded their resignations, with 18 finalised and another 11 awaiting processing.
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