Avon and Wiltshire forensic inpatient and secure wards require improvement
The CQC carried out an unannounced inspection
Last updated 12th Sep 2024
Forensic inpatient and secure wards at Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership require improvement.
The rating comes from the Care Quality Commission who carried out an unannounced inspection of the service earlier this year.
The CQC carried out the unannounced inspection after people using the service raised concerns about the quality of care they were receiving.
Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust service a population of around 1.8 million across Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire, and Bristol, North Somerset, and South Gloucestershire.
Catherine Campbell, CQC deputy director of operations in the south, said:
"We found very little had been done to improve people’s care since our previous inspection in July last year.
“We saw people’s care was being impacted by staff shortages, which was causing an over-reliance on agency staff who weren’t as familiar with the service or people’s individual needs."
The overall rating for Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust is unaffected and remains requires improvement.
The CQC said staff told inspectors "they were still anxious about reporting incidents and speaking up when things went wrong, due to concerns about their job security if they did so".
Leaders said they were taking steps to address both of these issues by providing more training and staff said this was helping to improve the culture.
The trust also said since the inspection, it has cut its agency numbers by 53%.
'Right policies and procedures in place'
Inspectors said the service "had the right policies and procedures in place to handle incidents.
"Safety incidents and complaints were treated as opportunities to put things right, learn and improve.
"Staff understood duty of candour and were open and honest with people and their families when things went wrong."
Bosses at the partnership have told us they accept the findings and are working to improve.
In a statement Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust said:
“We accept the CQC’s findings and since the inspection in January 2024 have launched an extensive training programme for staff, and invited external organisations into the service to carry out independent reviews.
“We value everyone who works with us but also acknowledge the impact a high use of agency staff can have and addressing this has been a Trust-wide priority leading to a sustained reduction overall. Within forensic and secure services there has been a 52% reduction in agency use since this inspection, which means we now have a more consistent team in place.
“While we recognise that there remain challenges within the service, we are confident these measures are now improving the overall standards of care for our patients.”