"I was met with resistance and excuses"

After my fantastic Psychiatrist let the trustI have only seen a Psychiatrist twice in nearly 2 years, both of whom were locums and left quite quickly.

Having already complained about the service I was receiving I found myself again in a position where I was telling healthcare professionals that I was not coping. I have no lead clinician that I am aware of or a Care Coordinator and I do not know what the plan for my care is, things that I believe I should be aware of.

No one at Manor Road has taken responsibility and when I complain I get excuses but no action. I made the decision to ask that I be transferred to another team, one with a full time Psychiatrist so I can consistently see the same person with whom I can build a relationship of trust, something that I feel is very important when divulging private information. You would think that this would be easy, I got in touch with PALS and I gave my reasons and explained that I wanted no further contact with Manor Road. I got a very curt response from a member of staff telling me  that I needed to contact Manor Road to ask for this to happen.

So I did ring Manor Road, I was very stressed and upset and felt that both myself and the member of staff I spoke to were put in a very difficult position. I was shocked further to be told that there was every chance that my request would go back to the person who had responded to my request to change teams (and told me to contact manor road).

I believe that my mental health has suffered because my treatment. As a person with a long term mental health condition I put my trust in the professionals but because I have a mental health problem I can be taken advantage of quite easily. However if you do try to stand up for yourself and demand better care you are met with resistance and excuses and you have very little recourse.

Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust need to remember that there business is people and often vulnerable people and when they get a complaint or request they should respond in a kind and non threatening manner. I would advise anyone who has had a similar experience to me or who feel that there individual needs are not being met to stand up and be counted. Surely gone are the times when as a mental health patient you are told you 'get what you get, like it or lump it'