UKC

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/nov/06/jimmy-savile-mental-health-in...

Jeremy Hunt has scrapped the mental health inpatients' survey which allows people being cared for in Broadmoor and the other mental health hospitals around the country to give feedback on thier treatment.

Now this has been scrapped, it makes it that bit harder for mental health inpatients to have a voice, and to give feedback on thier treatment or mention anything bad which might happen to them.

Any one of us could become a mental health inpatient at some time in our lives, mental illness doesn't respect status or race, or gender or background, please take the time to read the linked article and sign the petition.

Many thanks,

Tim

In reply to Timmd:

Good call Tim.

Done

Pete

In reply to Pete Ford:

Can't believe he's scrapped it to be honest. We can rate B+Bs and hotels, but not give feedback about our experiences in mental hospitals now.

In reply to Pete Ford:

Just bumping the thread really...

In reply to Timmd: nice one tim,petition signed.

In reply to Timmd:
Disgraceful, petition signed.

Jb.

In reply to Timmd:

TripAdvisor is state-funded?

In reply to Steve John B: Sorry, that sounds flippant (becuase it was I suppose). You're right, there should be some surveying of mental health inpatients' views.

In reply to Timmd: Fits nicely with the decision to stop having policy's impact upon disabled and vulnerable assessed. Having watched the changes in mental health funding over the last decade I fear for where it will go.

Petition Signed. and thread bumped.

In reply to puppythedog:Indeed, especially now with the big society theory it's looking like it'll be increasingly left to the charitable and voluntary sectors.

In reply to Timmd: I get very cross with the idea of the charitable and voluntary sector. In actual fact most of these organisations are non-profit priavte companies thta are contracted to provide a service in the same way that NHS and Statuatory Social Services are. The difference is that they are not NHS or Statuatory services. My experience of working with them is that they are not as good as statuatory services because they are cheaper. Less quallified staff, less experienced staff, less/no professional staff brings the costs down meaning they get tenders for providing services. What we are seeing in my locality is some services that were NHS now provided more cheaply by voluntary/private sector, they have tupee'd the staff accross and the terms and conditions of the staff are already at therat. Soon the service will be run by people who don't know what they are doing.


There is a systematic dumbing down of many aspects of mental health care and an overburdening of the staff in the NHS as it tries to compete with such organisations by overworking it's staff.



Sorry for the hijack, rant over. They are looking at privatising our out of hours GP service in Gloucester if the rumours I hear are true.

In reply to puppythedog: If they've tupeed the staff across, have those staff become less qualified and experienced?

In reply to Sir Chasm: No but their terms and conditions are under threat already with their pay only protected for a relatively short time. Those staff will then leave when offered lower wages and the vacuum will pull in less qualified staff.

In reply to Timmd: It isn't great, but I suppose Hunt is at least being honest by saying he doesn't give a stuff. A possibly worse position to take would be to canvas opinion and then do chuff all about it.

In reply to Timmd: Done

In reply to EeeByGum:I don't know, unthinking comes to mind for me, rather than honest about not caring. Who can say?

In reply to EeeByGum:I just think his name rhymes appropriately. At least this is bumping the thread.

In reply to Timmd:Bump.

In reply to Timmd:

Hey, thanks for letting us know about this!

R

In reply to Timmd:

He'll have scrapped it because he doesn't want the feedback. He will have taken note of the recent Schizophrenia Commission report condemning the treatment of schizophrenics as "shamefull".

In particular:

the use of compulsory treatment orders, which are often used with people who have no history of non-compliance with treatment.

and

the fact they die 15 to 20 years earlier than their peers.

They are god awful places.

In reply to Timmd:

This is the link to the petition:

http://www.change.org/en-GB/petitions/jeremy-hunt-bring-back-the-mental-hea...

In reply to ian caton: Thanks for the link (I couldn't follow the earlier one. I have also shared on faced book.

In reply to puppythedog:

Signed

In reply to Timmd: I spent a week on a mental health ward following a breakdown in 2006, and can honestly say that I have never felt so completely abandoned by anyone in my life ever. The nurses on the ward did their very best to deal with the day to day matters, but there was no-one to listen to what I had to say, or to try and help me come to terms with my condition. After a week, and a brief interview, I was simply sent home with some pills and an appointment with a psychiatrist for 3 months time..... primary mental health care in South Wales as absolutely abysmal, and this move will only allow it to sink further into the morasse. I will sign the petition when I get home (web browser so thoughfully supplied by my employer is outdated!)

Paul

In reply to Timmd:

genuine question:

if someone is sufficiently impacted by mental health issues to be detained at Broadmoor/Rampton/Ashworth, how grounded in reality are their views on their treatment likely to be?

In reply to ballsac: Good question.

It applies to all inpatients, they can just be people who are depressed enough to do themselves some harm, and also, delusions or personality disorders or not, they still deserve to have a voice about thier experiences.

I was thinking though, somebody thinking they're being followed by trees doesn't have to stop them being well aware if something wrong is happening to other patients, or to themselves, they might find themselves being punched in the face by another patient.

Tim