The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has published a report following an inspection of the mental health crisis services at West London NHS Trust in November.
This announced focused inspection was carried out in response to information received and concerns found in the last inspection. During this inspection, we looked at the trust’s Mental Health Single Point of Access (SPA) service and two crisis assessment and treatment teams (CATTs).
The SPA is a telephone triage service open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It provides a single-entry point for people’s referrals into secondary mental health services and mental health crisis support in the boroughs of Hounslow, Hammersmith and Fulham and Ealing.
The CATTs are mental health services based in the community. The West London NHS Trust CATTs support people in Ealing, Hammersmith and Fulham, and Hounslow. They support people aged over 18 years old in mental health crisis or those needing intensive home-based support.
Inspectors did not re-rate the service following this latest inspection. Therefore, the overall rating from the previous inspection remains in place as good. How safe, responsive and well-led the service was inspected but not rated.
The overall rating for West London NHS Trust also remains as good.
Inspectors found:
- People using the service felt listened to and involved in their care. Staff were understanding, supportive, calm, caring, and friendly
- Leaders had the skills, knowledge, and experience to perform their roles. They had a good understanding of the services they managed and were visible in the service and approachable for people using the service and staff
- The service managed safety incidents well. Staff recognised incidents and reported them appropriately. Managers investigated incidents and shared lessons learned with the whole team and the wider service.