CONSERVATIVE
New Forest East

HEALTH – PATIENT SAFETY IN MENTAL HEALTH UNITS - 07 November 2011

HEALTH – PATIENT SAFETY IN MENTAL HEALTH UNITS - 07 November 2011

Dr Julian Lewis: I do not know where on my hon. Friend's [Nicky Morgan's] list the Hampshire Partnership NHS Trust figures, but did she find any correlation between the quality of the infrastructure of the units and the numbers of people absconding? Did she find, for example, that a brand new unit, such as Woodhaven in my constituency, tended to have a lower rate of such problems? This is of particular interest to me, as that eight-year-old hospital is threatened with closure, and I have a debate on it later this week.

[Nicky Morgan: I am grateful to my hon. Friend. I have seen the subject of his Adjournment debate later this week. Unfortunately, I did not have the opportunity to go into that level of detail, but I shall come to the quality of care and to demonstrate that it has a huge impact on the absconding rate for patients. As I shall come on to mention, this is an issue on which the Department of Health and the trusts could work together. Interested Members or other interested parties should see the link between absconding and the quality of care given. ...]