Mental health services are slammed as 'threadbare' (From Western Telegraph)

Mental health services are slammed as 'threadbare'

MENTAL HEALTH services in Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion have been strongly criticised following an inspection. An investigation report by the Commission for Health Improvement described them as 'threadbare' and often unable to help service users with urgent needs. It found chronic staff shortages, lack of action on known risk areas and confused lines of accountability. Staff shortages caused a heavy reliance on locums and bank staff, and there were occasions when service users who need to be detained had been left in the community overnight.

On occasions when second medical recommendations were needed to determine whether service users should be detained, this relied almost entirely on a retired GP. When he was unable to attend, service users requiring urgent attention sometimes did not receive it, putting themselves and others at risk.

At one point, the division's medical director had to spend six months covering a consultant post in Ceredigion, to the detriment of his clinical leadership role. Other staffing problems included evidence of 'burn out', high staff sickness rates, and concern about the level of supervision for professional staff.

Despite this, the Commission for Health Improvement (CHI) found many hard-working and committed members of staff and many were delivering good standards of care in difficult circumstances.

Frank O'Sullivan, Pembrokeshire and Derwen NHS Trust chief executive, said: "We already have a continuous improvement programme, begun before the CHI visit and carried on since. We have an action planning meeting in May to decide the best way forward. However, it is a pity that CHI has given such a negative report on certain aspects of our mental health services at the expense of excellent practice in other areas.

"Some of the problems identified are not unique to our Trust, but are issues UK-wide - difficulties of staff recruitment, especially in key specialist areas; a shortage of consultant psychiatrists; the rural nature of Pembrokeshire and Derwen; and a UK-wide history of under-investment in mental health and learning disability services going back many, many years.

I am keen that our patients, staff and local communities are reassured about the Trust, the work we do and the way we do it."