Chloe SmithMP for Norwich North
Chloe Smith
Chloe Smith, Member of Parliament for Norwich North has today chaired a meeting with the Norfolk and Suffolk Foundation Trust and regional Members of Parliament.
Chloe called for the meeting, which was attended by MPs from across Norfolk and Suffolk, to discuss the Trust’s current operations. This is particularly pressing following the recent announcement of the health watchdog Monitor’s decision to probe the Trust’s financial health.
Prior to the meeting, Chloe and Ipswich MP, Ben Gummer, requested that the Trust prepare to brief regional MPs on a regular basis and the Trust will meet with MPs again in February.
Additionally, Chloe and her colleagues took the opportunity to raise specific casework issues on behalf of constituents who are facing acute mental health challenges. MPs raised their concerns about the number of patients sent out of area, crisis care resources and response times, delays in patient discharge and support for carers.
The Trust told MPs that they are reopening a ward in Hellesdon Hospital, and setting up new crisis care arrangements working with the voluntary sector, funded by the government’s Crisis Care Concordat. They are also funding liaison psychiatrists in new places including the new urgent care unit at the NNUH, and the Norwich Walk In Centre in its future location. The Trust says they are meeting all their targets (4 hour, 72 hour and 28 day).
Chloe has helped many constituents with detailed and specific cases where they have not got the mental health service they need and has also argued in Parliament on behalf of constituents that there should be real equality between physical and mental health services and their budgets.
The Government has made new funding available to the NHS both for winter pressures and in the Autumn Statement, and mental health minister Norman Lamb MP, who also attended the meeting, explained that these require Clinical Commissioning Groups to treat mental health equally. Mr Lamb confirmed that NHS England will be achieving parity of esteem through budgets in the near future.
Speaking after the meeting, Chloe said:
“As a local MP, I hold regular meetings like this with various public authorities to hold them to account, raise constituency issues and to offer all support to get a better service for the people I represent. It is important for management to hear what patients, carers and hardworking staff tell us.”
“The Trust were frank with us about what needs to be done to improve mental health services in Norfolk and Suffolk. They agree that sending patients out of area is both bad for the patient and bad for their budget, and we got their commitment that such poor planning will not happen again. I also want better crisis care for constituents who need it. Now that NHS England is taking steps to get mental health funding right, I am hopeful that our Trust and all its staff can be supported to do better for patients. I will stay on the case.”