Saturday 2 August 2008

acute inpatient care at BLPT

Mandy has posted about her own and her father's experience of BLPT's inpatient care on her own blog. When I was really unwell last Christmas, BLPT staff as well as my own GP cautioned me against using BLPT's inpatient services. Friends who have been on local wards have found the scary, chaotic, underfunded places.

The Healthcare commission's latest survey paints a disturbing picture of acute inpatient provision across the country, with most providers being rated as Fair or Weak. In the words of the HCC,
Fair – this means that the performance of this trust only meets the minimum requirements and the reasonable expectations of patients and the public.

BLPT is rated as Fair. The individual categories suggest that:
Patients are admitted to hospital when it is appropriate for them and they stay in hospital no longer than necessary.
Fair
Services focus on the needs of the individual and provide care that is personalised and promotes recovery and inclusion.
Good
Service users and carers are involved in planning their own care, how the ward is run and helping to improve the service.
Fair
The ward has approaches in place to make sure patients, staff and visitors are safe.
Fair

As far as the weakest areas go, these are as follosw:
Is there an effective integrated care pathway to ensure that discharge from hospital is timely, with involvement from the crisis resolution home treatment team? WEAK
Lowest scoring aspects (less than 50%) were as follows:
Service users with an out of hours phone number 1/3
Availability and take up of alternatives to admission 1/3
Discharges facilitated early with crisis resolution home treatment team support 1/4Delayed discharges 1/3
Care Programme Approach seven day follow up 1/3
Regular one to one sessions with nursing staff 1/4
Service user access to phone line that can be used in private and computer with internet access 1/4
Training on diversity 1/4
Accessibility of welcome pack or information guide for service users and carers 1/4
Arrangements in place to support carers and families 1/3
Range of service user involvement methods used 1/4
Staff training in dealing with service users who use alcohol or drugs 1/4
Assessment level for Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts 2/3
Staff training in prevention or handling of violence and aggression 2/4
Staff training in dealing with service users who use alcohol or drugs 1/4
Use of bank and agency staff 3/4
Range of risk assessments 4/4
Staff trained in sexual safety awareness 1/4
Appropriate environment which promotes privacy and dignity 1/3
Service user access to an electro-convulsive therapy clinic that has been enrolled with and/or accredited by the Electro Convulsive Therapy Accreditation Service 1/4

3 comments:

theMuddledMarketPlace said...

OMGG................

anne said...

If only health care administrators cared as much about patient satifaction on these units as they do on their general medical and medical specialty units. Let me know your thoughts!

Disillusioned said...

MMP - yes! Scary indeed.

Anne - I think you are right. Patient satisfaction in most areas of mental health care seems to be of little importance - and perhaps most of all in inpatient care, for the most needy of patients.