The 24-bed acute inpatient unit attached to Albury Hospital, Nolan House, is at capacity and mental health patients are on medical wards.

Bethany Ward's mother is among eight patients just on medical ward two, who are waiting for a place in Nolan House.

The Friends of Nolan House member said the setting was harmful for her mother and for the other people on the ward.

"She has been moved five times since being admitted last Friday," Ms Ward said.

"I came in on Thursday morning to shower her, and she was trying to move an elderly woman who was in the shared room with her, thinking she was helping.

"I have told the staff she is a risk to other people.

"Only last week, she was spitting out her medication, yet the nursing staff are putting her medication on the desk and then walking off.

"They are not mental health nurses, and this is a mental health problem.

"If someone came out of surgery and all of the surgical wards were full, would you put that person in a psychiatric ward? No. So why is this acceptable?"

Victorian chief psychiatrist guidelines state if a bed is not available, one should be requested in the nearest most appropriate mental health service, and that failure to gain access to a bed should be reported to the chief psychiatrist.

Ms Ward made contact with the office of the chief psychiatrist on Thursday about the situation.

"I was told by the office of the chief psychiatrist that usually what happens is the health service lets them know if they are under that much demand, but that hadn't happened," she said.

"The mental health clinician I spoke to told me she would be making calls about what was happening.

"The people on these wards deserve answers, about what Albury Wodonga Health is doing - because they're not getting mental health nurses to visit patients.

"Many of them don't have family to speak up on their behalf, and they could have their entire care happen on a medical ward without the appropriate resources - so they will be back in no time."

A spokeswoman for Albury Wodonga Health said procedures relevant to reporting to the chief psychiatrist had been followed.

"There are standard processes in place to support all health services to source beds from other health services when required," she said.

"Albury Wodonga Health adheres to these processes, including during this recent period of high service demand.

"Albury Wodonga Health, like all mental health services at this time, has experienced increased demand for our mental health services.

"The effects of bushfires within our region earlier this year, and now, the flow-on effects of people isolating and limiting contact with their usual support networks and health professionals during COVID-19 restrictions, has meant a higher than usual number of people requiring acute mental health support."

Friends of Nolan House spokesman Les Schmutter said capacity being reached in Nolan House and the 20-bed Kerferd Unit at Wangaratta was not a once-off.

"I believe it does happen from time to time," he said.

"The feedback I was given on Tuesday night was that there has been a 30 per cent increase [in mental health admissions] over recent times.

"Lots of things are happening in our area which would increase the needs in mental health.

"It's not as if the number of beds has increased.

"We need bigger and better facilities and sooner is always going to be better than later. It is long overdue."

The Victorian adult mental health performance indicator report shows in quarter three of 2019-2020, bed occupancy was 114 per cent at Albury Wodonga Health, the highest out of all regional health services.

Mental Health Victoria deputy chief executive Larissa Taylor said the recommended bed occupancy rate for acute inpatient units was between 80 and 85 per cent, as outlined in the Royal Commission into Victoria's mental health system.

"In the four years to 2016-2017, there was an increase in emergency department admissions [related to mental health] by more than 19 per cent," she said.

"As the population has increased, very few beds have been added to the system.

"There's been decades of chronic under-investment in mental health services, and this has led to a significant gap ... that's even more pronounced in regional areas."

Ms Taylor said people experiencing acute mental illness being placed on a medical ward was "not an ideal situation".

"When you put someone who needs acute mental health care on a general ward, you're not only placing the patient at further risk, but also the person supporting that patient, because they don't have specialist training," she said.

"For people to recover, they need to be placed in a supportive, caring environment that really responds to their acute mental health needs in the most appropriate ways."

Ms Ward said her mother's most recent admission to hospital could have been avoided; a referral to the Acute Crisis Intervention Service was not sent at the end of May.

"She was meant to be reviewed by a psychiatrist twice-weekly, and I contacted this team to ask where things were up to, and had to send them a photo of her discharge summary because they didn't have the referral," she said.

"Only a few days later, she is back in hospital, in the same emergency department where she was assaulted in November."

In that incident on November 1 of last year, Ms Ward arrived at Albury Base to find her mother distressed.

"It is difficult for me to find the words to write this, as I believe what happened ... was preventable," she wrote in a complaint.

"I tried to ask her what was causing this state of distress and upon my request, my mother started to cry, and with a great effort she was able to manage a few words ... 'I have been hit'.

"My mother told me patient 'A' was brought in by paramedics and ... appeared in a state of agitation.

"My mother was sitting quietly facing her back towards patient 'A', and then suddenly she felt a hard hit in the back of her head."

Staff did not notify Ms Ward of the incident that occurred in the waiting room of the emergency department, where no security were present.

She contacted Albury police to advise officers who responded that she and her mother did not wish for charges to be laid, but learned the patient had already been served in Nolan House.

"Why was this patient, who was clearly mentally unwell and needing acute treatment, left in the emergency waiting room with members of the public?" Ms Ward wrote.

"My mother was left unsupported after suffering an assault.

"Both patients were owed a duty of care and they were both failed."

The AWH spokeswoman said the health service does not have security in the emergency department waiting rooms, with security from ED to attend to incidents in the waiting area.

Ms Ward pointed to "historical failings" such as this experience in November, which have compounded her current frustrations.

Recently, Ms Ward has:

"I've been told ''we're not used to this level of involvement by families'," she said.

"I'm not trying to be a pain - I'd love to take a step back - but my experience of the right care for my mum is ignored."

Ms Ward has met with operational staff and understands her mother will soon be transferred to Nolan House, which was the subject of planning funding in 2018.

IN OTHER NEWS:

Ms Ward was frustrated to learn recently that plans relevant to the upgrade were knocked back in October by the NSW government, over operational issues.

"The service plan for Nolan House was developed between January and April 2020 and pleasingly, has been accepted by NSW Ministry of Health in recent weeks," the AWH spokeswoman said.

The plan outlines inpatient mental health services required up to 2031, and now that it has been approved, a project brief can be developed for a new facility.