One year on from abuse revelations at mental health trust, the problem is WORSE

ALMOST a year on from shocking revelations patients were being abused by staff at Greater Manchester's mental health trust and months of promises of progress from bosses - the problems have become WORSE, a new damning report has revealed.

- HELENA VESTY

The Manchester Evening News has spent months reporting on serious issues at Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust (GMMH). Young people dying on mental health wards, followed by admissions medical notes were doctored; harrowing treatment of vulnerable people at inpatient facilities caught on camera; and staff in racism rows are among the headlines revealed.

In July last year, amid 'information giving [the watchdog] concerns about the safety and quality of the services, the trust was inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). A raft of problems was discovered.

A year later, the CQC yesterday published new findings that despite promises of improvement - things at GMMH have actually got worse.

The overall rating for the trust, as well as how well-led it is, has moved down from 'requires improvement' to 'inadequate. The trust's 'safety' rating remains 'inadequate, while its ratings for how 'effective' and 'responsive' it is remain as 'requires improvement? How caring services are has moved down from 'good' to 'requires improvement!

After GMMH was last inspected in July 2022, mental health chiefs were hit with two warnings - demanding improvements in safety and low staffing levels.

The health watchdog has now slammed the trust as inspectors again found a continuation of concerns regarding the safety of people which need to be addressed as a matter of urgency! A review of the trust's leadership uncovered 'a disconnect between leaders and what was happening on the front line, leaving yet more patients at risk of harm, inspectors said.

'Leaders need to urgently improve so people are safe and free from harm'

Inspectors carried out fresh observations of the trust from January to March of this year.