Campaigners have written to the chief constables of Norfolk and Suffolk requesting an investigation into thousands of mental health deaths in those areas. Coroners have raised safety issues in their reports, but no actions have been taken to make improvements. According to an audit report carried out by independent auditors, 8,440 patients have died unexpectedly in Norfolk and Suffolk over three years. The Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust has said it has begun a review of patient deaths.
Authorities are required by law to respond with an action plan within 56 days to reports warning of risks of future deaths, known as prevention-of-future-deaths reports (PFDs). But Mark Harrison, from the Campaign to Save Mental Health Services in Norfolk and Suffolk, believes that there is a criminal case to answer. He suggests that the police should investigate where the same mistakes have been repeated.
Student Theo Brennan-Hulme, who was 21, suffered from bouts of severe anxiety. He had sought help from his GP and his family after the crisis in early 2019. He was referred to the community mental-health service in Norfolk as an emergency, but had to wait eight hours before being assessed at Hellesdon Hospital, Norwich. The family was not contacted after the assessment, despite this being a part of the treatment plan in place. Additionally, the family was not referred to the mental-health home-treatment team to explore treatment options. On 12 March 2019, he was found in his university bedroom having killed himself.
Serious questions arise regarding the deaths of mental-health patients in Norfolk and Suffolk. Independant auditor Grant Thornton concluded that the trust had lost track of who had died. More than 8,000 patients died unexpectedly between 2019 and 2022. For three-quarters, the trust still did not know how or why. However, the trust defines an “unexpected death” as the death of a patient “who has not been identified as critically ill or whose death is not expected by the clinical team.”
Charlie, a nurse at the Trust told BBC News that senior management was still not listening. He suggests that many of the deaths he was aware of were preventable and that staff shortages were compounding the problem. Two months ago, trust deputy chief executive Cath Byford told the Norfolk Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee that it would take another four years “at least” for the “measurable culture” to improve. The Campaign has written to NHS England, the Department of Health and Social Care, the Care Quality Commission, and local MPs on the matter
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