Apology and payment for man following mental health failures

He also received a second apology and payment from West Sussex County Council for failing to ensure that medical recommendations made under the Act were valid following an assessment.

A report from the Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman said the man – known as Mr B – was taken to hospital by the police in July 2023 after becoming suicidal.

He was detained under section 136 of the Act and an assessment of his mental state was carried out.

Delays in finding him a bed in a specialist mental health unit saw Mr B kept at the hospital before being transferred to a crisis facility.

Despite the efforts of hospital and mental health staff, it was two weeks before a space was found for Mr B and it was agreed that he still met the criteria to be detained.

This was where the county council was found to be at fault – the recommendations had expired and were no longer valid.

So Mr B had to go through another mental health assessment – an experience he described as ‘very distressing’.

The Ombudsman’s report said the council explained that it had shared learning from the complaint with staff, and several additional checks were now in place to prevent a similar error in future.

A council spokesman said: “We accept the Ombudsman’s findings that we were responsible for not ensuring medical recommendations remained valid during reassessment. We have offered an apology and agreed to provide a financial remedy [of £300] in acknowledgement of the uncertainty and distress caused.”

As for the Trust, Mr B complained that he had not been adequately informed about his status under the Mental Health Act after his first assessment.

He wrongly assumed that his detention had started the moment he was taken to the hospital, when in fact it started when he was admitted to the specialist mental health unit.

The report said that Mr B felt there had been a ‘significant failing’ in not properly explaining his legal rights.

He added that he felt the lack of clear information ‘was intentional’ so that he would not try to leave the hospital or the crisis unit. And he implied that he would not have agreed to move to the crisis unit if he had fully understood his rights.

The Trust acknowledged there had been communication breakdowns and missed opportunities. Plans are being explored to create an information leaflet for people in Mr B’s position, including details about their rights.

A Trust spokesman said the Ombudsman’s findings had been accepted and an apology given to Mr B.

They added: “As a result of this case, we have reviewed of our complaints policy to improve our processes and prevent similar situations from happening again. We are now working with local partners to action the remaining recommendations.”

The Trust also agreed to pay Mr B a ‘symbolic payment’ of £600 ‘to recognise his avoidable distress and upset’.

* Anyone can contact Samaritans free, anytime. You can call on 116 123, email [email protected] or visit www.samaritans.org for more information.