Stop discharging mentally ill, hospitals are ordered after killings

Hospitals have been ordered to carry out an urgent review of safety in NHS mental health services after a spate of deadly incidents.

NHS England wrote to trusts on Friday raising concerns that too many patients with severe conditions, who can pose a risk both to themselves and others, were struggling to access treatment.

Claire Murdoch, England’s mental health director, told services to stop discharging mentally unwell patients simply because they do not turn up to appointments.

Units have also been told to check for gaps in the care of people with severe mental illness, such as psychosis or paranoid schizophrenia.

According to the latest NHS guidance, issued alongside Murdoch’s letter, there have been repeated “service failures”. These include patients not getting consistent care, with staff chopping and changing, while in other cases workers have missed “red flags” such as criminal offending.

Families and carers have been ignored when they raised concerns, NHS England said.

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Source: The Times, 28 July 2024