Healthwatch Norfolk: Is it any use?

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We have resisted criticising Healthwatch Norfolk, in large part out of respect for its Chairman, who was an outstanding Norfolk Coroner who never hesitated to hold Norfolk & Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) to public account. But, enough is enough. Today, Healthwatch Norfolk had a stall at the Forum in Norwich, with expensively-branded pencils, rubbers,

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In the cells: Breach of human rights so common that Norfolk and Suffolk Constabularies have a standard complaint letter

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It is happening again this weekend. No beds. No accountability. No responsibility. Norman Lamb claims to be a champion of the mentally ill with his self-promotional but resourceless gimmicks such as sponsored bike rides, the Cashless Concordat and ‘parity of esteem‘. The truth is that mental health services have been cut in real terms while

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Community Care: Why I’m retiring from social work to fight the cuts damaging our service’

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Click the image below to read Terry Skyrme’s letter in Community Care, explaining why he has decided to retire from the mental health frontline to fight the damaging cuts to services.

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EDP: Health watchdog urges mental health trust to improve community services in Norfolk and Suffolk

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Award-winning Health Correspondent Adam Gretton of the EDP reports: Officials from the Care Quality Commission (CQC), said the mental health trust for Norfolk and Suffolk had high numbers of “worse than expected” results from the survey, which was conducted by the health watchdog earlier this year. More than 250 patients using community services at NSFT

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Legal: NHS Trusts & CCGs face criminal prosecution and unlimited fines for inappropriate discharges and placements. Individual staff face up to two years’ imprisonment

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Below is an excellent and informative bulletin on the subject of the legal obligations of NHS trusts regarding discharges and placements.  It was prepared by the former solicitors of Norfolk & Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT), Mills & Reeve, in July 2012.  The bulletin was widely circulated within NSFT.  Let’s hope that NSFT’s new in-house

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Why the CQC selected NSFT for early inspection in its own words: Decision to schedule Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust for Inspection

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We wrote to the Care Quality Commission (CQC) because Norfolk & Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) has been claiming that the forthcoming CQC inspection is routine/random and that the Campaign to Save Mental Health Services in Norfolk & Suffolk was being inaccurate and misleading to write that NSFT had been selected as a priority for early

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Exclusive: Letter to HealthEast from all Waveney AMHPs exposes crisis in Suffolk and calls for NSFT Executive Board to resign

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“NSFT are not to fit to lead or manage mental health services in Great Yarmouth and Waveney. The testimony and reflection above demonstrates this. As such, nothing they propose can be trusted by the CCG to be able to address the endemic problems they themselves have caused. The Waveney AMHP group calls on the CCG

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Newsflash: NSFT a priority for inspection by CQC under new approach

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The CQC website reports: The first batch of NHS mental health providers will be inspected and rated in October using our new approach. The inspections will assess the four providers to see if the service overall is: safe, effective, caring, responsive to people’s needs and well-led. They will be carried out by a mixture of

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Devastating HealthEast consultation: NSFT is breaking the law and ignoring NICE and Department of Health guidance

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“Managers are in the impossible situation of holding medical recommendations for admission to hospital, but unable to comply with their duty under section 13 MH Act 1983. We have reached a point where Approved Mental Health Professionals (AMHPs) are no longer able to operate on a legal basis. Patients’ safety is being placed at risk, and their

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Community Care: ‘It feels like some lives are worth more than others’: working on the mental health frontline

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Emma Corlett writes in Community Care (trigger alert). “As I say, some lives it seems are worth more than others. Where has the humanity gone? It’s a damning indictment of our society and the state of our services that the local shopping centre has now erected safety hoardings to prevent similar incidents. I have no words.”

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Downfall video: NSFT leadership team in the Hellesdon Hospital bunker

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Watch the video below. If you are an Apple user and have trouble viewing the embedded video you can view it directly on Youtube. Sorry, this issue is a sometime side effect of the on-going war between Google and Apple which is beyond our control. If you don’t understand why this Downfall parody is satirical humour read this.

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Community Care: Mental health staff consider industrial action over ‘serious safety concerns’ with crisis care

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“Union members at the mental health trust serving care minister Norman Lamb’s north Norfolk constituency could be balloted on taking industrial action in protest at ‘serious safety concerns’ with services. The Unison branch at Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust voted unanimously to start the process of holding a ballot for industrial action after Approved

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Unison: Approved mental health practioners (AMHPs) call for urgent action on beds and ballot for industrial action at NSFT

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As we predicted earlier this week, frustrated AMHPs at Norfolk & Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) have called in the union. Unison today announced: Norfolk based Approved mental health practitioners (AMHPs) employed by Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust TODAY met to discuss the ongoing bed crisis. The meeting, called by UNISON, heard from AMHPs

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BBC Radio Norfolk: NSFT crisis in mental health services dominates morning schedule

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  Click the images below to listen on iPlayer to the two morning shows featuring the crisis in mental health services at Norfolk & Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT):    

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John Lister: Meltdown in Mental Health

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John Lister is a respected journalist, academic and director of Health Emergency. In his monthly column in the Morning Star, John looks at on the Meltdown in mental health services and focuses on Norfolk & Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) in particular. It is an excellent article, even if you wouldn’t normally read the Morning

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29th Day of Lent: Going without beds for both husband and wife

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Luke writes: “A few weeks ago an 86 year old man needed admission. He was sectioned, and after FOUR hours of phone calls a bed was eventually found… in SCUNTHORPE. Yes, the nearest available bed to Norfolk and Suffolk was SCUNTHORPE. However, there was no ambulance service available to take him, private or public. So, his

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25th Day of Lent: Going without an assigned care co-ordinator

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William writes: “Due to team members leaving & maternity cover, we’re being told to move patients to a ‘team-held pot’ rather with duty expected to pick them up rather than allocating a care co-ordinator. It is an unusual practice and who is accountable? As duty is covered by existing team members, it is still adding

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Response from North Norfolk CCG to AMHP letter highlighting bed crisis at NSFT

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See the letter below which states that North Norfolk CCG will not accept the closure of any more acute adult beds, including the hostels, until people placed out of county are returned and there is no likelihood of out of area placement reoccurring. This reply can be downloaded as a pdf also. You can read

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