"Management of my care plan"

I was referred to my local CMHT for specialist treatment and given a care plan, but despite having numerous assessments, receiving a diagnosis and agreeing to a treatment plan, I have been made to wait a significant amount of time before receiving any treatment, and the Trust has provided no explanation for the delay or told me when my treatment will begin. The Trust is effectively withholding treatment without my consent and against the wishes of the medical professionals involved in my care.

One medical professional told me in person that due to changes within the NHS, my care plan would be transferred to a different CMHT, and they asked if I was agreeable to receiving my treatment from the new CMHT. I said I was, and they said the CMHT would contact me at some point, yet they have not contacted me. The CMHT also told me in an email that my care plan would be transferred to a different CMHT in due course, and I received a letter from the Trust saying the same thing.

My health and wellbeing has suffered immensely as a result of this delay, however the Trust is refusing to acknowledge anything has gone wrong with my care plan and treatment, and recently they have falsely claimed I have already received treatment and been discharged from my care plan. I have provided the Trust with letters and emails I received from the CMHT which prove I am still in the system waiting to start the treatment I've been referred for, but the Trust’s staff refuse to even acknowledge the emails and letters. Something has gone catastrophically wrong with the transfer of my care plan to the new CMHT, but the Trust is claiming their computer system says there was never any transfer planned.

I have encountered a culture of denial within the Trust and a refusal to accept responsibility for what has gone wrong with my care plan and treatment. Many of the staff members I have spoken to have behaved in an unprofessional and callous manner, including one staff member I spoke to who was rude, abrupt, combative, and totally lacking in compassion. 

Two of the Trust’s staff agreed to my request for a meeting, but they failed to attend the meetings I arranged without any explanation or apology, then the staff member I was in contact has not replied to any emails. I told them in an email that this is having a huge impact on my mental health. I am now not getting any replies to any of my emails.

I spoke to one medical professional involved in my care plan last year, but they said they couldn't meet with me as they couldn't find my records. This is just incompetence, Are patient records being recorded properly?

 I believe this is what has caused the delay in transferring my care plan to a new CMHT. The Trust also seem to have a high turnover of agency staff, so I cannot contact any of the staff I've previously worked with as they have left the CMHT. I recently spoke to another medical professional involved in my care, but they also no longer work for the CMHT. They said they would forward my emails to the CMHT, but nobody from the CMHT responded to me.

Some of the other stories on this website have a response from the Trust’s Patient Experience and Involvement team. I phoned their team recently and left a message, but they have not called back. I sent them an email the same day and received an automated reply which said "a member of the team will contact you as soon as possible." They have not contacted me or responded to the follow up email I sent. Why are they refusing to respond? I also called the Trust’s PALS team and left a message, but they have not called me back.

I managed to call my local CMHT recently, and the staff member I spoke to said they would ensure someone from the CMHT would call me back to discuss my care plan, but of course they have not called me. This is an appalling way to treat an NHS service user, and if this is how the Trust is treating me, how many other service users are also suffering from substandard care?

I am sharing my story to make my voice heard and to see if I receive a response from the Trust. If the Trust’s Patient Experience and Involvement team read this and want to help, I am still prepared to meet in person with their staff to resolve this issue. If their staff had attended our meeting as they agreed to, this situation would have already been resolved, and I would have been able to start the specialist treatment plan I agreed to with the CMHT.