Friday, July 21, 2017
West Yorkshire and Harrogate Sustainability and Transformation Partnership welcomes Care Quality Commission mental health report
A Care Quality Commission (CQC) report published 20 July on the key findings from its review of mental health services across England was welcomed by West Yorkshire and Harrogate Sustainability and Transformation Partnership (WY&H STP) CEO Lead Rob Webster and Nicola Lees, the WYH STP lead for mental health and Chief Executive of Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust.
The report highlights areas of good practice and improvements in the ratings of mental health providers. It also identifies several themes and areas of concern for services in England, these include physical environments not designed to keep people safe, care that is over-restrictive and institutionalised, and poor recording and sharing of information that undermines the efforts of staff to work together.
Rob Webster said: “It is good to note improvements in mental health services, many of which are evident in West Yorkshire and Harrogate. We are also addressing any concerns through West Yorkshire and Harrogate Sustainability and Transformation Partnership as part of NHS England’s Five Year Forward View. We are working together locally and at a regional level, to make sure that people with mental health conditions are treated with the same respect as those with physical health issues. This will help to ensure we care and treat the ‘whole’ person tailoring care to the person’s need; supporting people with long-term conditions to cope with anxiety or depression, and ensuring people only go to hospital when absolutely necessary.”
Nicola Lees, the STP’s mental health lead and Chief Executive of Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust, added: “The four trusts that provide mental health services across the region are working together, alongside commissioners, to strengthen mental health provision and ensure that people are supported in the least restrictive environment, ideally in a community setting, rather than in hospital. This includes ensuring that people have access to urgent care, 24/7, so that people get the right care to meet their needs, with community-based ‘safer spaces’ that offer a real alternative to A&E and hospital admission. Work is already underway to ensure we’re delivering consistently high quality care across West Yorkshire and Harrogate which is an area that the report highlights, with a strong focus on reducing out-of-area placements which we’re already doing in the region, so that people are cared for close to home.”
More details on the STP’s mental health work, led by South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Trust, Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust and Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust, is provided on the West Yorkshire and Harrogate STP website.