The Hospital for Mental Health and Dementia, where staff ‘did not know the patients’ names’ and’ asked them to sit down when trying to get up ‘

A mental health hospital has been shut down by watchdogs after investigators revealed shocking practices. The care unit was criticized for ‘not respecting patients’ privacy and dignity ‘, as’ staff often talked about patients, ignored patients and talked about their personal hygiene needs in the main lounge ‘, while’ patients were told to sit down every time they tried to get up”.

Monet Lodge in Withington provided care for up to 20 elderly people with complex mental health problems specializing in dementia care. Following the dam inspection in early March this year, the site was barred from admitting additional patients and instructed to discharge current patients or find them new placements before the end of that month.

Concerns were first raised by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), a social care watchdog back in February 2021, when Monet Lodge was put into special measures. It found that the building was ‘not safe, unclean, not well equipped, not well furnished, not well maintained and unfit for purpose’, and that ‘staff had not received basic training to keep patients safe from unavoidable injury’.

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By August, there had been little improvement at Monet Lodge, according to the CQC. Another inspection revealed that “emergency medicine was obsolete, prescription forms were not completed correctly and [staff [were] to give patients medication without waiting for the necessary time between doses as indicated on the prescription forms’.

The hospital facility, run by the National Mental Health Charitable Organization Making Space, was last inspected on March 3 and 4, 2022. The results were again so shocking that CQC forcibly shut down Monet Lodge. In the report, published on May 30, investigators said: “The service was not safe. It did not have enough nurses to provide care to the patients.

“The staff did not handle the risk well. There was a high level of restrictive practice, including improved observations (when a certain number of staff stay with patients at all times) without any clear justification, use of containment (stopped patients from moving around freely in the hospital) and the use of mechanical restraint in the form of hip belts and groin straps, which prevented patients from moving out of their bed or chair.

“The need for these to be used was not assessed by a specialist in the field and there was no clear justification for the use. The staff sometimes retained patients and were not trained to do so. This meant that there was a high risk for harm to patients due to improper techniques potentially being used. “

Along with restrictive practices, “staff talked about and ignored patients” and told them to “sit down when trying to get up” and did not know the names of their own patients in even more troubling findings. “Staff did not always treat patients with compassion and kindness and did not respect their privacy and dignity,” CQC said.

“We saw many examples of this during our two-day inspection. We saw that staff often talked about patients, ignored patients and talked about their personal hygiene needs in the main lounge. Patients were asked to sit down when trying to get up. up. .

“The staff did not understand the patients ‘individual needs. Some of the staff we spoke to did not know the names of the patients they cared for. We found that care plans did not include information about patients’ lifestyles, hobbies and family.

“Care plans were often generic, containing information that did not refer to the patient in a meaningful way. Staff did not involve patients in any decisions about their care, although families were asked to review the care plans and sign them.”

The staff also did not understand the Psychiatry Act or the Psychiatry Act, which covers assessment, treatment and rights for people with mental illness. The Psychiatry Act also establishes patients’ rights when they are detained in hospital against their wishes or when they do not have the capacity to make their own choices about their lives, safety and treatment.

“We found that staff assumed that patients lacked capacity without making any assessments of their capacity,” the report continued. Families were often asked to sign decisions without first consulting the patient and outside of a legal framework.

“It was difficult to identify which patients were detained under the Mental Health Act (MHA) or were subject to a Detention Center as the record in patients’ notes was poor and staff had little knowledge and understanding of their responsibilities.”

Have you or your family been affected by poor care? Call MEN’s news desk on 0161 211 2920 or email helena.vesty@reachplc.com

The ‘lack of qualified staff’ was so severe that patients ‘stayed in hospital much longer than they needed’ as assessments could not be carried out. Only four of the 18 patients at the time of the CQC inspection were detected to be in need of continued hospitalization.

“We found that many patients in the hospital were ready for discharge, but there had been no attempt to support the patients to progress from the hospital. After our enforcement action, all patients were re-evaluated and only four of the eighteen patients showed up. need for continued treatment. hospital care, ”reads the report.

It told a spokesman for Making Space Manchester Evening News : “After 14 years of Making Space providing the service, Monet Lodge officially closed on 31 March 2022, in accordance with the requirements set by the NHS Manchester Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG).