Llandough: Concerns over patient restraint training at mental health unit

Inspectors said immediate improvements were necessary to reduce the risk to patients, staff and visitors

Immediate improvements are needed at a mental health care unit after staff restrained patients without the required training, inspectors say.

The lack of training meant patient and staff safety could not be guaranteed in two wards at University Hospital Llandough, to the west of Cardiff.

Staff also needed personal alarms which were in working order, their report said.

Cardiff and Vale University Health Board has accepted the findings.

It has produced a plan for improvement as a result of the inspection work, and progress will be monitored by the independent regulator Healthcare Inspectorate Wales (HIW) which carried out the inspection at the units.

"Our inspection identified many areas for improvement, with some requiring immediate assurance to reduce risk to patients, visitors, and staff," said HIW chief executive Alun Jones.

The inspection found that staff compliance with mandated "managing aggression" training was low, with just over half of the staff completing the training on one of the two wards.

Inspectors also said the health board should ensure all personal alarms are working and provided to all staff at the units, which provide adult mental health services for in-patient detoxification and neuropsychiatry, in January.

"We would like to reassure service users and their families that staff are fully qualified and competent in managing behavioural issues which require restraint and at all times the correct procedures were followed," the health board said.

It added that the welfare, safety and quality of care of patients had always remained its utmost priority.

The health board also said a "phased approach" was being taken with regard to smoking, to ensure "consistent progress towards a smoke-free environment".