Tag Archives: NHS
The care home abuse epidemic
The care home abuse epidemic: Families make 15,000 complaints in just one year (and that’s just a fraction of the true scale)
- Some 14,888 claims about welfare of residents aged 65 and over in 2013-14
- And almost a third of these ‘safeguarding referrals’ were upheld
- Only half of the 152 councils responded to freedom of information requests
- Families claimed their complaints were often ignored or not taken seriously
Norfolk and Suffolk mental health services branded 'inadequate'
Special Measures
The mental health trust for Norfolk and Suffolk is being recommended to be placed in special measures after being rated inadequate.
The Norfolk and Suffolk Foundation Trust was “not a safe, effective or responsive service”, said the Care Quality Commission.
The report said there were also concerns about a lack of beds and “urgent action” was needed.
The trust said it would improve services and put patients first.
Norfolk and Suffolk mental health Skype ‘outsourcing’ causes concern
The Norfolk and Suffolk Foundation Trust manages mental health wards at Hellesdon Hospital near Norwich, and around the counties
A health trust’s proposal to help treat patients with depression by using “staff from lower wage countries” via Skype showed a lack of understanding of mental health care, say campaigners.
The idea was put forward in a report to the government by the mental health trust for Norfolk and Suffolk.
Unison, which represents mental health staff, said the plan failed to show an understanding of mental health care.
A trust spokesman said the proposal was looked at but has been dismissed.
The plan, drawn up towards the end of last summer, was contained in a successful application to the government by the Norfolk and Suffolk Foundation Trust (NSFT) to fund consultants to look into new ways of running the trust.
One option could see the NSFT become a mutual – a firm owned by its workers, as is the case with retailer John Lewis.
The report said the use of staff from outside the UK to help prevent depression and psychosis was a “new approach” to be explored.
Emma Corlett, spokeswoman for Unison at the trust, said: “Our view of the report is that it shows whoever did the application did not have a very clear understanding of the work frontline staff do or the way face-to-face therapy works.
