Beds Mental Health Trust goes SEPT-ic

Yep....it's merging and blurring and all round a bit of a cock up.

Oh Beacon of the South East hasn't turned out quite to be the shining light that everyone assumed.

I heard, via the grapevine, that an amount of money that was 'supposed' to be allocated for carers was used to cover financial probbies elsewhere and when South East Essex Partnership Trust were asked where it had gone, they replied "Well, nobody told us it was ringfenced".

Dr Geohegan...that self proclaimed bearer of the silver slipper in this Cinderella service land, seems to have been missing in non action for the past year he was 'caretaker' managing..Literally nobody could communicate with him and he refused to communicate with anyone else (including my MP).and not much has been heard of him since he officially took to the helm of a very much run down Bedfordshire and Luton MH Service.

In fact, the only thing anyone has noticed since he started is that jobs are not being re-advertised, caseloads are doubling (likely to treble now) and quality staff (such as my most recent care co-ordinator) are leaving Community Mental Health Teams pretty sharpish...needless to say the dead wood is being left to float around in the mire with no one having the balls to either breathe some life back into them or pile em up and ship em off.....apart from some of the more angry and vocal patients. Others are doing the usual talking on corners and the talk is not of a renewed faith in a kind of seconded management team overseeing their care service more a depressed acceptance that it can get even crappier than it is. When you are having your care services delivered by one of, if not, the worst MH Trust in the country there isn't much to be optimistic about.

I understand (altough don't have the full details) that SEPT is once again being called to task about some other misdemeanors in the core (Essex) part of it's service. That is the one with Beacon Status.. the Trust that everyone in the Eastern Region bows down to before it's glory or gets their eyes burnt by the glare.

I have to say I am not surprised my care co-ordinator is leaving. She was one of the bright young things, intelligent and eager and run ragged...doing the job of 2 (maybe more) people.

Finally, between her, my MP and lawyer (although the latter seems to have sauntered through the gate after the horses had bolted) my direct payment has been paid into my account. That was last week. I remember the frantic day my care co-ordinator turned up and insisted I opened a new bank account that day, because the panel had agreed it and she had been informed I must have an account for the impmending payments to be paid into. That was the week before Christmas.

It does..and that is mostly due to correspondence between my myself MP (a rather vacant MH Director who wrote an Action Plan that seemed to be for someone else). In this plan the Director, who had informed me in November that it was looking positive in regards to the Direct Payment Application. In the plan he made a key point of stating there was an option of going for a Direct Payment to support my needs viz a vie my care plan. Did he take an amnesia pill at some point.

Actually, the commitments he made in regards to Dad's CMHT input into his care have amounted to fekk all. Dad hasn't seen anyone from that team for a couple of months.

All this is bureaupap is now with the lawyer. I am sick of dealing with complete cretins who obvisously are better at writing Action Plans (incorrect as the information within them may be)..than keeping staff informed of and ensuring they adhere to what they should be doing.

If I were to give Dr Geohegan one piece of advice, it would be to find out what his Directors are up to..and if they are up to directing. After that, I would say that I think he bit off way more than he could chew. He is most probably relieved that the Tories got in, with their agenda to slash public services...it now gives him an excuse to carry on what he has been doing (pretty much unchecked) for the last year.

I wonder if Mr Cameran is planning to look at the management styles and salaries of those in top tier positions within MH Trusts and to equate that with what is actually being delivered to patients. Not that anyone will give a stuff.

People are going to be so stressed and hard pressed. Dog will eat dog, anything smaller, less cunning, injured...The time for the survival of the fittest is nigh.

Hark..I hear the bell tolling! Nope it's just the pinger on me microwave oven, telling me the pizza baguette is ready.