This is Care Opinion [siteRegion]. Did you want Care Opinion [usersRegionBasedOnIP]?
Care Opinion

Tries but misses the mark

Story from nhs.uk

"Tries but misses the mark"

About: Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

My brother has been a long term LYPFT patient, and he is on the austic spectrum. We are a very close knit Muslim family.

At first I thought the amount of criticism the Crisis Team at the Becklin Center was getting was unfair, but then spoke to my family and realised that it was understandable.

My uncle said he went to the big SUN meeting in September, and one of the female board members chairing the meeting said that the hospital was committed to working with all the people of Leeds, and things like religion were important, but less important than for other hospitals, because patients rarely die so they don’t have to worry about burial and respect for bodies.

Prompt burial is important for Muslims, but Muslims are also Muslim during their life. Physical health and mental health are different, and what might be important for a physical health doctor, might not be important for a mental health doctor and vice versa.

Lets look at the simple handshake

Hospital Consultant- Does not care if my brother shakes her hand, wont record anything about handshakes, might internally pass judgement.

Pyschiatrist- The patient did not shake my hand!!. In a letter to our GP the psychiatrist wrote “____ avoided shaking my hand, difficult to build rapport”

My perspective(I was at the appointment): She has fake nails, a ring, and coughed into her hand GERM ALERT!! I would rather not shake your hand, but I will so you don’t get offended

My brother read the letter written to the GP and was hurt. He thinks the psychiatrist doesent like him, and was quick to judge. He said he was trying to be respectful, because Muslim people will try to avoid touching people of the opposite sex.

Religion/race/ethnicity is important, and the way a Mental Health Hospital will encounter it is different to what matters in physical health. People should do more talking and less assuming. It could all have been avoided in the doctor asked about the handshake instead of using a "two plus two equals five” approach.

Leadership matters, and if senior people don’t realise every area of healthcare encounters culture then there is no hope.

More about:
nhs.uk logo
Do you have a similar story to tell? Tell your story & make a difference ››

Responses

Response from Leeds and York NHS Partnership NHS Foundation Trust 4 years ago
Leeds and York NHS Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

Submitted on 09/09/2019 at 10:29
Published on Care Opinion at 10:29

I am sorry to hear that your families’ experience of the Trust has not been a positive one; in two aspects - the event your Uncle attended and the care provided to your Brother.

In respect of the Service User Network (SUN) meeting you refer to, which your Uncle attended. This was called the “SUN Question Time”, and was held on the 5th October 2019 at the Hamara Centre, Beeston. Over 85 people attended including Trust Executives, Clinical Directors and Senior Managers, with attendees encouraged to ask questions to the panel on Trust services. The question you refer to was asked of our Director of Nursing, Professions and Quality, Ms Cathy Woffendin and was in relation to the duties of hospital morgues and the prompt burial required for Muslims. Ms Woffendin explained that we are providers of Mental Health and Learning Disability Services and that this question was one that could be better responded to by our colleagues at Leeds Teaching Hospital who manage bereavement services. It was never the intention of Ms Woffendin or the panel to minimize the importance of the question and I would like to apologise that this was how it felt to your Uncle. I would encourage you to contact the PALS service at LTHT to discuss this issue further if required on Tel: (0113) 2066261.

Regarding the experience of your Brother, I have asked Ms Caroline Bamford, Head of Diversity and Inclusion to review this area of your concern. Ms Bamford has responded that she is very sorry to hear about your brother’s experience and wants to assure you that, in line with our Trust values, we aim to treat everyone with respect and dignity. This includes responding appropriately and fully taking into account the cultural and religious or belief needs of people in contact with our services.

Ms Bamford also acknowledged that we do not always get this right. At times this may be due to lack of knowledge or awareness of specific cultural norms and practices, however, we are committed to continually improving what we do. Diversity and inclusion training for all staff at all levels within our Trust is one of the ways in which we are supporting our staff to engage appropriately and effectively with people from all communities.

We value the involvement of people using our services and their carers to support us to further improve what we provide. We have a variety of ways in which people can become involved and due to your experience and cultural knowledge we would welcome your involvement in this work. Please feel free to contact us if you would like to discuss this further with Ms Bamford. Our PALS team will be able to facilitate this meeting, please contact them on 0800 052 5790.

Linda Rose, Head of Nursing

Opinions
Next Response j
Previous Response k