Katharine Fox
7 Dec 2023 · Coroner Stephen Simblet · Essex
This report repeats 1 earlier warning, and was raised again 1 time later. See the linked reports.
The coroner's concerns
1. disconnection between hospital and community psychology services causing lack of handover and substantial wait
“I am concerned that the disconnection between the provision of psychology services to patients in hospital and the provision of similar psychology services to patients in the community, including the fact that the community psychology service does not receive any form of handover and that there is a substantial wait for the provision of psychology sessions which may well require continuity to be delivered effectively”
2. inability to access patient notes across systems
“some clinicians in the psychology service may not be able to access notes made by clinicians in either other hospitals or other parts of the county”
Linked reports
Closely relatedConfidence 0.90 · high
Earlier report
“Further, oral evidence from a senior EPUT witness confirmed that the Trust could not, as the electronic systems were presently configured, readily access information held by GP practices regarding individual patients”
This report
“some clinicians in the psychology service may not be able to access notes made by clinicians in either other hospitals or other parts of the county”
Closely relatedConfidence 0.85 · high
This report
“I am concerned about the fact, if that is indeed right, that some clinicians in the psychology service may not be able to access notes made by clinicians in either other hospitals or other parts of the county.”
Later report
“Evidence was heard that the mental health crisis staff do not appear to have appropriate access to the primary care mental health System One records and there is a risk that vital information is not being shared.”
Responses
2023-0510-Response-from-Essex-Partnership-University-NHS-Foundation-Trust.pdf ↗· Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust
Stated action · 2023
“The Psychological Services Care Unit have been advised of this concern and have provided the following assurance. Every patient who is receiving psychological intervention on an inpatient unit and is in need of continued psychological intervention post discharge, will have a handover of care from the inpatient psychologist (verbal/in writing) to the Community Team psychological practitioner.”