INSIDE TRACK: MENTAL HEALTH

Published: 13/10/2005 Volume 115 No. 5976 Page 13

As ever, recruitment is a major issue for mental health trust managers.

One London manager in charge of a number of inpatient services reports that finding people who want to work in his inpatient units is increasingly difficult. 'We just cannot find enough motivated staff, ' he says.

Elsewhere in the country, costcutting is causing major headaches. 'Many services are being reviewed and closed, hence dozens of nursing jobs are at risk, ' says one exasperated adult services manager.

'The issue I have to deal with is the relocation of these staff into appropriate services. We have a lot of inappropriate slotting in of nurses who have outdated outlooks and a proven track record of non-achievement.

'They have had no investment in their development for years yet now find themselves applying for posts that they cannot possibly perform in; key posts such as modern matron and ward managers, ' 'At a time of substantial investment into the re-provision of services, working with these unmotivated, defiant staff members will severely hamper effective project working. I have interviewed a number of staff from London recently who seem very motivated and wish to relocate. But we have no vacancies due these service closures.

'The argument from human resources is that all staff have transferable skills but they are clutching at straws. Standards will be compromised and the inpatient experience will once again revert back to one of low expectation.' The uncertainty of life after the current Mental Health Bill potentially becomes law is also creating work for managers.

One senior manager said work was underway to try to work out how many people are going to have to be employed to make the new tribunal system work.

'Our current mental health act managers are volunteers, so it is unfair to give them all this extra workload, ' he says.

He added that inpatient wards will have to be prepared for proposed changes to care planning that will mean every service user will have a care plan.