New Service Set to Free Mental Health Patients From Secure Units

LIVERPOOL, England - Thousands of people who could be cared for in the community remain in secure mental hospitals often a long way from home due to insufficient community and step down support services according to Gray Healthcare.

“Gray Healthcare has been established to address this issue which for many patients and their families is a personal tragedy. We have developed a care model that responds to the Government’s 2007 Mental Health Act commitment that restrictions on people with mental illness must be the least restrictive necessary to enable effective treatment while ensuring the safety of the public,” said Jonathan Gray, Chief Executive.

“Up until now clinicians have faced a dilemma and have been unable to discharge patients who no longer require the physical security of a hospital environment but still exhibit some challenging behaviours and need a considerable amount of continuing support. By default, such patients have had to remain in hospital as the existing NHS community mental health teams have limited resources and can only visit patients intermittently.”

The new service (www.grayhealthcare.co.uk) which is being welcomed by patient advocates and clinicians ( www.prnewswire.co.uk/cgi/news/release?id=261517) enables NHS referrers to specify exactly how much support the individual patient needs and the detailed care plan required.

Gray Healthcare is already receiving a large number of patient referrals from all over the country and the interest is focussed on people who need a high level of nursing input, a range of therapy services and help with housing and other domestic arrangements.

The management team have decades of experience at a senior level within the NHS and private sector organisations providing secure care and rehabilitation services and regard the new service as the obvious next step to extend the care pathway model into the community.

Jonathan Gray said: “The goal for our patients is a safe and secure return to life in the community and an end to the failures that result in them ending up back in secure care.”

For more information contact Selwyn Rowley or Sophie Butler at LMMC on +44(0)1926611700 or email selwyn@lmmc.co.uk or sophie@lmmc.co.uk

Source: Gray Healthcare

For more information contact Selwyn Rowley or Sophie Butler at LMMC on +44(0)1926611700 or email selwyn at lmmc.co.uk or sophie at lmmc.co.uk