Tom Bristow of the EDP reports:
An independent inquiry into the rise of unexpected deaths at the region’s mental health trust will be carried out after it emerged figures for Norfolk and Suffolk were the highest in the country.
The announcement came on the same day as we revealed there were a total of 35 unexpected deaths at Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) in the last three months, bringing this financial year’s total so far to 112.
The inquiry is “desperately needed” according to Ann Higgins, the mother of Christopher Higgins who died while in the care of the trust at the Fermoy Unit in 2013.
She said: “I’m happy it’s being carried out but I hope it’s done by someone from outside Norfolk and Suffolk.
“I hope they find that the service provided isn’t robust enough and that lessons will be learned.”
A spokesman for the Campaign to Save Mental Health Services in Norfolk and Suffolk said: “The trust, health commissioners, and NHS England need to rapidly implement the inquiry’s recommendations to reduce the number of serious incidents and deaths as soon as possible and to allow the bereaved to know that everything is being done to prevent future tragedies.”
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