- Independent mental health service
St Andrews Healthcare Northampton
Report from 20 January 2025 assessment
Contents
Ratings - Services for people with acquired brain injury
Our view of the service
St Andrew's Healthcare is a registered charity specialising in the assessment, treatment and rehabilitation of people with psychiatric disorders, including people with developmental disabilities. St. Andrews Healthcare provides services on three main sites: Northampton, Birmingham and Essex. This assessment took place in Northampton, which had five divisions: child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS), services for people with a learning disability and autistic people, medium secure, low secure and specialist rehabilitation, and neuropsychiatry. The last inspection of the neuropsychiatry division took place between the 18 and 20 October 2022. This was an unannounced inspection, triggered by the receipt of information, which gave us concerns about the safety and quality of services on one ward in this core service. The information of concern was received by CQC between July and September 2022. Our last comprehensive inspection of this service was in June 2016 and a follow up inspection in May 2017. The concerns received included the following: safe staffing levels and how incidents were safely managed, physical healthcare and care of the deteriorating patient. The overall rating for the inspection was requires improvement with safe and well led rated requires improvement. There was insufficient evidence available to rate effective. We looked at 23 Quality Statements across all 5 Key Questions. This was an unannounced focused inspection of the neuropsychiatry division which was undertaken in response to identified risks. During the inspection we inspected all quality statements under safe, and well-led. We also inspected specific quality statements under effective, caring and responsive, which had been selected based on identified risks and concerns. This inspection was rated based on our findings.
People's experience of this service
We spoke with 19 patients across four wards. Most patients we spoke with felt safe, however 4 patients (20%), told us that they did not feel safe. Two carers told us that they did not feel that their relative was safe on the ward. Patients knew who to contact to raise any concerns around safety, however, not all people felt safe and supported to understand and manage any risks. Eight patients told us that there were staffing issues on the wards, one patient told us that the lack of staff on the wards ‘was the problem’. Three patients told us that there was a high use of agency, one patient told us that they were not sure of the job roles of agency staff and 8 patients (44%) told us that there were often new faces on the ward. Six patients told us that their activities or leave had been cancelled or delayed due to staffing levels. Four patients told us that they did not know what their medications were for, and 1 patient had not been informed when changes were made to their medications. Most patients were able to access information and advice about their health, care and support and how they can be as well as possible. Not all patients felt that they had care and support that was co-ordinated, and that everyone works well together and with them. Two patients told us that they had not be involved, two patients said that they were sometimes involved, and 1 patient told us that whilst they had been involved, they didn’t agree with what had been written. Most patients told us that they were treated with respect and dignity. However, two patients told us that staff had not always been respectful. Some patents told us about delays in obtaining their prescribed activities or leave. One patient told us that they were unable to access a gym but wasn’t aware why. One patient told us that they had not seen their plan of care and another patient told us that staff did not include or inform them of any change in care and treatment.