Essex Mental Health Trust ‘sorry’ for ‘failing’ patients, families and carers

The trust responsible for running mental health services in Essex has apologized to patients, family members and carers for “complaining” them.

In its opening statement to the Lampard Inquiry, Essex Partnership University Trust (EPUT) said this failure had been compounded by not properly listening to the “concerns of patients, family and friends”.

The study is looking at the deaths of at least 2,000 mental health patients in Essex over 24 years.

Barrister Eleanor Gray KC, representing EPUT, said: “The trust would like to reiterate to all those who have suffered the loss of a loved one that we are very sorry and to recognize that even when there may have been hope and belief that the inquiry would provide the answers they had sought , nothing can bring a loved one back”.

She added that patients, families and carers had a “right to expect a safe service” but that it was “not always provided”.

Ms Gray said EPUT was looking to improve mental health services and the trust “understood the importance of it learning lessons”.

Before the statutory inquiry, only 14 of EPUT’s 11,000 employees came forward to testify.

But the trust said it was “committed to engaging with openness” and saw this inquiry as “a space for openness and transparency”.

Ms Gray admitted that serious issues had been raised about staff behaviour, including neglect and abuse of patients and staff falling asleep.

“We acknowledge that there have been serious allegations of sexual misconduct against patients by staff and staff by other staff.

She said sexual safety was an “ongoing issue” and pointed to a national care quality commission in 2018 which said sexual incidents were “common” in psychiatric wards.

Ms Gray said the trust was investing £14.4m in the 2024/25 financial year to make improvements and had already undergone a “wholesale transformation programme”, making wards safer and introducing new technology such as body-mounted cameras the body.

But she pointed to national pressures facing mental health services, saying there was an “increasing demand for services” and a “significant pressure on beds”.

She also said trusts were being affected by national recruitment issues such as the nursing shortage, which she said had affected staff workloads, morale and the ability of staff to provide high quality care.

Ms Gray said the trust had embarked on a massive recruitment drive, adding 1,700 staff by 2023, and said the vacancy rate had fallen to 10 per cent from a high of 40 per cent in 2020.

She said that much of the hiring had been done overseas.

In her opening speech, inquiry chair Baroness Lampard warned that the number of deaths investigated was expected to be “significantly higher” than the previously reported figure of 2,000.

But in addition, they could never know the real number.

Ms Grey, from EPUT, questioned the numbers, saying the study would include patients who died of natural causes, unrelated to mental health problems, including some who were late in life.

She added: “It is clear that concerns had been raised in numerous reports about the quality of data across England.

North East London NHS Foundation Trust, which provides children and young people’s services in parts of Essex, also said how “sorry” they were.

Valerie Charbit, a spokeswoman for the trust, said they were “absolutely committed to learning and changing to prevent further mental health deaths”.

Grieving families will read impact statements at the inquest next week, with evidence sessions due to begin in London in 2025.