Rapid improvements sought at Essex mental health wards

An NHS trust has been told to make significant improvements at two mental health wards after concerns were raised about patient safety.

An inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) was carried out at Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT) in October.

The CQC issued a warning notice and rated the trust "inadequate" overall for its service in both female wards.

The trust said the care and safety of patients was "our number one priority".

The commission suspended ratings on effectiveness, caring and leadership while it awaited the findings of a follow-up inspection carried out in January.

Inspectors made unannounced visits to two wards - Galleywood at Chelmsford Hospital and Willow at Rochford Hospital - after the trust informed the CQC of a "scheduled broadcast" of undercover filming by the Channel 4 investigative programme, Dispatches.

Both wards provide inpatient care and treatment for women admitted on an informal basis, or detained under the Mental Health Act 1983.

The CQC report, published on Friday, said staff did not address "blind spots" in the wards where patients could not be seen, and procedures were not always followed regarding recording and reporting incidents.

The storage of "ligature cutters" was not in line with trust policy, the report said, which could cause confusion in cases of emergency.

Patients also told inspectors they had seen staff falling asleep while on duty as well as high staff vacancy levels, with patients cared for by "unfamiliar" temporary staff.

Ceri Morris-Williams, CQC deputy director of mental health in the east of England, said the inspection "raised some serious concerns about people's safety".

"Our inspectors reviewed data and found two instances where staff were reported to be asleep while undertaking observations," she said.

"We also found blanket restrictions in place which stopped people from accessing the gardens, bedrooms, bathrooms and toilets. This is unacceptable."

She said the trust was warned of enforcement action if "rapid improvements" were not made.

An EPUT spokesperson said: "Over the last two years we've delivered many improvements that benefit our patients - these include spending £20m on improving the environments on our wards to make them both safer and more therapeutic, as well as working with our staff on improvements to the way in which they support and care for people who are suffering a mental health crisis.

"We know there is more to do and we continue to drive forward in collaboration with the people using our services, their families and carers."

The trust also said it was working hard to attract more permanent staff against a background of NHS-wide staff shortages.

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