Manchester City Council Health Scrutiny Committee Meeting - 24 May 2023

This meeting focused on the Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust Improvement Plan. The Scrutiny Committee invited representatives from the Trust to attend this meeting following a previous meeting in October after the concerns raised in the BBC Panorama programme led to allegations of abuse and ill treatment of patients by staff. The overview of the Trust’s improvement plan was delivered with a focus on priority areas and an overview of the community mental health teams in Manchester. The meeting invited representatives from CHARM (Community for Holistic, Accessible, Rights Based Mental Health), who shared their lived experiences of either being a patient at Edenfield or a family member of a patient. Paul Baker, founder of CHARM, stated that this was about human rights and if the human rights of patients are not addressed, this will happen again. Many of those who spoke strongly emphasised the need for a co-production approach and listening to those with real experience and using their opinions and suggestions in decision-making. Angela Morgan highlighted the needs of LGBT+ patients being over represented in mental health services and often women at Edenfield were treated differently to men in the same facility.

Dr Gail Coleman pressed the fact that people from African and Caribbean communities are more likely to receive a diagnosis of schizophrenia but do not have access to the same types of treatment including therapy and as a consequence, are over medicated and not treated with dignity. She believes GMMH need to address and implement anti-racist approaches to ensure the patients and staff in their care are safe at all times. The need for co-production was raised again in regards to long term funding for community support if generational inequalities are to be addressed. The recommendations included the development of a mental health working group and forums to develop different ways to talk to patients and their families and for people to be listened to, the need for a significant cultural change within the Trust at all levels, significant improvement of communication with patients and their families, especially regarding the highlighting of concerns. You can access the recording of the May Health Scrutiny Committee meeting here - https://vimeo.com/showcase/7723560/video/826807252. To access the meeting papers, visit https://democracy.manchester.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=142&MId=4408&Ver=4. If you would like to attend or speak at a Health Scrutiny Committee meeting, you can contact Lee Walker at  [email protected].