Legal News

There are fears that some mental health services across southwest London could be lost when services are “redesigned”.

South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust (SWLSTG) is one of the mental health trusts across the country restructuring its services – some mental health trusts are facing budget cuts of up to 20%, leading to longer waiting lists for some patients to access services, as well as mental health wards closing or services being merged to save money and improve efficiency.

Local publisher the Kingston Guardian reports that a public consultation into mental health services in southwest London has opened – patients who would be affected by any changes are those living in Wandsworth, Richmond, Kingston, Sutton and Merton.

The trust is proposing a range of options for merging services at Springfield Hospital in Tooting, Tolworth Hospital in Kingston and Queen Mary’s Hospital in Roehampton.

However, in July SWLSTG announced that from 2018 it would also be cutting 10% of mental health beds for inpatient care, to focus more on care in the community for acute care patients.

Mental health patients requiring acute care inpatient treatment may have a higher risk of self-harming or even suicide. However, more trusts are introducing seven-day phone line support for mental health patients treated at home who may reach a crisis, to prevent them from becoming institutionalised in mental health hospitals.

The trust is hoping to raise £160 million to implement its preferred option of selling NHS land to centralise mental services at Tolworth and Springfield hospitals, while closing St Mary’s, which treats around 500 patients. An estimated £25.87m would be saved over 50 years.

The public consultation closes on 21 December.

Duncan Lewis Mental Health Solicitors

Duncan Lewis mental health solicitors are the UK’s leading provider of Legal Aid mental health services and can advise patients on access to services and detention under the Mental Health Act.

Duncan Lewis mental health solicitors regularly visit hospitals and prisons to advise on mental health law – and are available at short-notice for appointments across England and Wales.

For expert legal advice on mental health care, contact the Duncan Lewis Mental Health Solicitors Helpline on 0203 114 1124.