Mental health trust services lose their outstanding grade

ONE of the region’s biggest NHS trusts has seen its community mental health services stripped of a previously “outstanding” rating.

- By SAM VOLPE Health reporter

The Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear (CNTW) NHS Trust’s community mental health services for adults are now rated “requires improvement” by the Care Quality Commission.

NHS bosses said they had a plan in place to make improvements.

Issues identified during the inspection, which took place between February 25 and 27 this year, included that some patients had care plans that were “either out of date, weren't personalised or didn’t exist at all,” while inspectors also highlighted waits of up to two years for support. The inspectors visited a number of community treatment teams and “early intervention in psychosis” teams around the region.