The Guardian: Hundreds of mental health beds needed to end ‘shameful’ out-of-area care

Cuts in mental health beds have gone too far, leading to the “shameful practice” of patients being sent hundreds of miles from home to be treated, according to psychiatrists. The Royal College of Psychiatrists is calling for the NHS to urgently create hundreds of extra beds for people who are seriously mentally unwell in order to tackle […]

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The Guardian: Nuwan Dissanayaka: Jamie is psychotic and won’t go outside. Mental health services are failing him

This article from Nuwan Dissanayaka needs to be read by everybody with an interest in mental health. Dr. Dissanayaka is really worth following on Twitter. We’re delighted Nuwan’s views are getting wider attention in the national press. Dr. Dissanayaka is the consultant psychiatrist in the Assertive Outreach team in Leeds. Of course, assertive outreach at

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BBC News: Norfolk and Waveney mental health: Dissatisfaction with care

Nic Rigby of the BBC reports: More than 80% of people are dissatisfied with mental health services for adults in Norfolk and Waveney, a report has found. The survey, by the Norfolk and Waveney Sustainability and Transformation Partnership (STP), said 40% did not know how to access services at all. A patients group criticised the

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Press Release: Norfolk and Waveney Adult Mental Health Strategy written by BCG

A spokesperson for the Campaign to Save Mental Health Services in Norfolk and Suffolk said: We already know from service users, carers, front line staff and three Inadequate ratings from the care regulator, CQC, that mental health services in Norfolk and Suffolk have been in crisis for the past five years. What alarms us about

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BBC News: Mental health: The NHS patients who are ‘abused and ignored’

Nick Triggle of BBC News reports: New rights should be given to severely ill mental health patients detained in hospital to stop abuse and neglect of this vulnerable group, a review says. The 1983 Mental Health Act is outdated and needs an overhaul, sectioning is being misused and does not properly protect patients’ rights, it

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BBC News: Fraud doctor Zholia Alemi: Drowned man’s family voiced fears

Nikki Fox and Julian Sturdy of the BBC report: The family of a drowned patient have claimed he might still be alive if the fake psychiatrist responsible for his care had done her job properly. Darren King, 31, of Suffolk, died after suffering a seizure in his bath in 2017. Mr King was living independently

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EDP Front Page: Is ‘remote, awful and inhumane’ mental health support in north Norfolk behind a spate of young men’s deaths?

In investigative reporting that is worthy of a national journalism award, Jessica Frank-Keyes of the Eastern Daily Press writes: Grieving parents and a retired GP say “remote, awful and inhumane” mental health support is leaving young men in north Norfolk at a heightened risk of taking their own lives. In recent months two young men

EDP Front Page: Is ‘remote, awful and inhumane’ mental health support in north Norfolk behind a spate of young men’s deaths? Read More »

EDP: Ex-staff members speak out over ‘rotten foundations’ of mental health trust

Geraldine Scott of the Eastern Daily Press reports: Healthcare professionals who used to work at the region’s mental health trust have slammed “rotten foundations” stemming from a radical redesign six years ago. Former employees have spoken of their disappointment at the latest inspection report into Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) which plunged the

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EDP: Not enough staff, not enough beds – inspectors brand region’s mental health trust inadequate again

Geraldine Scott of the Eastern Daily Press reports: The region’s mental health trust has once again been branded as failing as inspectors found serious issues first raised three years ago had not been fixed. Inspectors found patients at Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) were unsafe and the service was inadequately led, as the

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EDP: Health secretary Jeremy Hunt admits care for 19-year-old Lydia Stafford, from Congham, was not good enough before her death

Geraldine Scott of the Eastern Daily Press reports: A young woman from Norfolk who was “intelligent, loving and full of life” may have survived if the same level of treatment for eating disorders was fair across the country, health secretary Jeremy Hunt has admitted. Lydia Stafford was just 19 when she was found dead at

EDP: Health secretary Jeremy Hunt admits care for 19-year-old Lydia Stafford, from Congham, was not good enough before her death Read More »

C4: Wasting Away: The Truth About Anorexia: Thursday 24th August 2017 at 10 p.m.

Members of our mental health campaign are featured in C4’s documentary, The Truth About Anorexia, talking about the tragic death of Lydia Stafford. The programme begins at 10 p.m. on Thursday 24th August 2017. Click on the image below to discover more on the Channel 4 website:

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EDP: Norfolk clinical commissioning group one of just nine in England to miss mental health investment target as suicide rates soar

Geraldine Scott of the Eastern Daily Press reports: One of Norfolk’s clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) is due to fall short of the amount of money it should be putting towards mental health despite latest figures showing the number of suicides in the area has rocketed. Research from the Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCP) has shown

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Survey: How easy is it to see a community consultant psychiatrist at Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust?

[poll id=”3″] You can leave any comments you may have below. We use robust security measures to ensure the integrity and reliability of this poll. Please do not try to manipulate the results of this important survey: it won’t work and is insulting those who have taken part.

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Radical Redesign Heroes: Where are the TSSers now? Part 4: Andrew Hopkins, Finance Director then acting Chief Executive then Finance Director, NSFT

During the radical redesign, Andrew Hopkins was Finance Director of Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT), becoming acting Chief Executive after the resignation of Aidan Thomas in July 2013. While Andrew Hopkins ‘acted-up’, NSFT employed astonishingly expensive interim finance directors. NSFT wasted unbelievable sums, millions of pounds, on redundancy and early retirement payments in the midst

Radical Redesign Heroes: Where are the TSSers now? Part 4: Andrew Hopkins, Finance Director then acting Chief Executive then Finance Director, NSFT Read More »

Radical Redesign Heroes: Where are the TSSers now? Part 3: Maggie Wheeler, Chair, NSFT

Because of her then status in the Norwich Labour Party, and the frequent use of politically-correct buzzwords like ‘recovery’ and ‘ImROC’, many people trusted Maggie Wheeler and her Board when it promised ‘new services will be as effective as they are now, if not better’ as a result of the Trust Service Strategy (TSS) at Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT), better

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Radical Redesign Heroes: Where are the TSSers now? Part 2: Aidan Thomas, Chief Executive, NSFT

Aidan ‘I’m No Dirty Den’ Thomas was the Chief Executive of Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) during the Trust Service Strategy (TSS) consultation process, better known as the ‘radical redesign’. The ‘radical redesign’ was condemned by the King’s Fund in the Health Service Journal (HSJ) and is widely regarded as an unmitigated disaster which resulted in

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Radical Redesign Heroes: Where are the TSSers now? Part 1: Hadrian Ball, Medical Director, NSFT

Hadrian Ball was the Medical Director and highest-paid member of the Board of Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) throughout the Trust Service Strategy (TSS), better known as the ‘radical redesign’. The ‘radical redesign’ was condemned by the King’s Fund in the Health Service Journal (HSJ) and is widely regarded as an unmitigated disaster which

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Fiscal Fantasy Island: NSFT spends over half its Out Of Trust Acute (OOA) Beds budget in first two months of the year

The number of out of trust acute (OOA) bed days has nearly doubled: from 332 days in April 2016 to 647 days in May 2016. Most of these patients are being sent to the expensive, remote and private Mundesley Hospital, where it seems that none of the medical staff have passed the exams of the Royal

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Help: Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspecting NSFT in July 2016

CQC, the independent regulator of health, mental health and adult social care in England will be inspecting Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust the week beginning the 11th July.  They would like to hear feedback about mental health services before the inspection. There are a number of ways people can feedback their views (CQC are

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Kept in the Dark: Daily Gazette: ‘inquest… to be adjourned after finding out the professions of two NHS workers were not as they had understood.”

The Daily Gazette and Essex County Standard reports: AN inquest into the sudden death of a teenager has been adjourned as new information has come to light. Harriet Philo-Powell died suddenly aged 18 at the end of February. Miss Philo-Powell’s family, who live in Bulmer, near Halstead, asked for the inquest into her death to

Kept in the Dark: Daily Gazette: ‘inquest… to be adjourned after finding out the professions of two NHS workers were not as they had understood.” Read More »

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