- author, Michele Paduano
- role, Health Correspondent, BBC Midlands Today
A troubled in-patient psychiatric unit is set to close following a series of safety concerns.
These include fires, patients with broken bones and staff concerns about the risk of death at Hill Crest Hospital in Redditch.
To plug the recruitment shortage, the trust that runs the centre is currently spending £2.5m a year on recruitment agencies and bank staff, a BBC investigation has found.
Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health and Care NHS Trust said the proposed closure was due to the building not being able to meet the latest acute mental health standards.
The BBC first uncovered problems at Hillcrest Hospital in July 2022, when staff locked themselves in their offices after a patient threatened to burn them.
The investigation uncovered allegations of patient rape, staff falling asleep at work, patients fleeing and bullying.
Subsequent inspections by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) found a significant decline in safety and quality on the ward.
In response, we have reduced our patient numbers from 18 to 10 to improve staff ratios and safety.
Image source, Getty Images
But officials raised further concerns in the letter, saying that while case numbers have dropped, hospitalized patients are becoming sicker.
“Staff are under enormous pressure and some are taking time off work with depression and anxiety due to the stress of the wards and the lack of support we have available to them,” the letter said.
The trust said staff and management have worked extremely hard since then to improve standards of care and ward conditions.
The hospital added that it was aware the building could not be renovated to meet modern care standards, such as en-suite bedrooms and good visibility for staff across the ward.
A spokesman said: “Our organisation’s aim is to operate two major psychiatric inpatient facilities in Hereford and Worcester, with wards and teams coming together in one facility to provide strong, immediate support to our services.”
It is hoped that sharing staff with the Elgar unit in Worcester will lead to reduced costs for seconded staff.
Staff may quit
Claire Breeze, from the trade union Unison, said more staff could leave because they would not be willing to drive the 30 miles (48.2km) to Worcester for their commute.
She said: “A lot of staff have concerns about the move. We don’t expect there to be any change to staff numbers.”
The coalition said the move risked creating further instability.
Former nurse Colette Carney believes the ward could have been saved if management had acted sooner.
“They had ample opportunity to highlight the issues years ago when I first raised concerns. Patients and staff have had this trust betrayed,” she added.
The trust said it had completed numerous interactions with staff and the public, consultation events, presentations and oversight at HOSC and had followed NHSE’s processes.
“A report seeking approval of this decision will be submitted to the Trust Board in July after which formal consultation with staff will commence,” it said.
