Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust

4. Ms P complains about the care and treatment provided by the Trust between 11 August 2022 and 7 September 2022, she says the Trust:

• communicated false information in her discharge summary and report • failed to provide adequate physical or mental healthcare • forced her to attend follow up care appointments • staff tortured and neglected her by making her sleep without a mattress • staff persistently referred to a diagnosis, which she says is incorrect.

5. She says, the inadequate care and treatment received from the Trust led to a rapid decline in her mental health which eventually led to her attempting suicide in March 2023. She says she became malnourished and developed pressure sores.

6. She says the mental harm caused by the Trusts physical abuse and battery has never healed and has left her with recurrent traumatic re-livings of the event, plus a severe fear of all nurses.

7. Ms P says the misinformation the Trust spread through their incorrect documents has caused her ongoing harm by painting her as dangerous, violent and non-compliant to other professionals, despite her saying none of these things being true.

8. By bringing her complaint to us, she would like the individuals responsible to be held accountable for their actions, this could include disciplinary action and further training.

9. Ms P would like formal apologies from the Trust and those individuals responsible. She would like the Trust to make systemic changes to prevent these abuses in future. She would like the Trust to be mandated to carry out actions they have told mental health tribunals they will do. She would also like financial compensation of £3000.

10. Ms P was admitted into the Trust’s care on 11 August 2022 and discharged on 7 September 2022.

11. On 21 November 2022, Ms P complained to the Trust. On 9 January 2023, Ms P’s husband returned to the Trust and raised additional issues.

12. On 19 April 2023, the Trust issued its response and signposts Ms P to us.

13. On 16 June 2023, Ms P returned to the Trust. On 23 June 2023, the Trust issues its response and signposts Mrs P to us.

14. Ms P brought her complaint to us on 17 April 2024.

16. The law says a person needs to make their complaint to us within a year of becoming aware of the problem. We cannot investigate complaints brought to us after one year, unless we consider there is a good reason to do so.

17. We assess Ms P was aware she had reason to complain on 7 September 2022. This is when Ms P was discharged from the Trust and believed the care and treatment she had received was not as it should have been.

18. To be within our one-year time limit, Ms P should have brought her complaint to us by 7 September 2023. Ms P brought her complaint to us on 17 April 2024, seven months and ten days outside of our time limit.

19. Ms P complained to the Trust on 21 November 2022, approximately two months after her discharge. Ms P’s husband then approached the Trust with additional complaint issues on 9 January 2023.The Trust issued its complaint response on 19 April 2023, and signposted Ms P to us if she remained unhappy. Ms P returned to the Trust on 16 June 2023, with the Trust issuing its final response on 23 June 2023, signposting Ms P to us.

20. We understand Ms P wanted to attempt to resolve her complaint through local resolution, so we think it was reasonable for her to return to the Trust with additional issues before coming to us. We consider this delay was reasonable.

21. Miss P received a final response in June 2023. There was then a significant delay of ten months in Ms P bringing her complaint to us on 17 April 2024.

22. We have discussed the reasons for this delay with Ms P to understand the why she could not bring her complaint to us between June 2023 and April 2024.

23. Ms P says the delay in bringing her complaint to us was due to her being hospitalised for four weeks in September 2023 for mental health reasons. She says in the following months she was in a mental health crisis. She told us she tried to take her own life in February 2024.

24. Whilst we appreciate it must have been very difficult for Ms P when she was suffering with difficulty with her mental health, we consider she could have brought her complaint to us sooner.

25. Ms P could have asked someone to help her with the complaint, such as an advocate, family member or friend. Ms P’s spouse had been part of the complaint process with the Trust in January 2023, which demonstrates she had adequate support around her.

26. We can also see evidence Ms P was able to pursue a complaint with us about a different NHS trust between November 2023 and January 2024.

27. Ms P has not provided us with strong enough reason to set aside the time limit. For that reason, we will not be taking any further action with regards to his complaint.

28. We recognise the difficulty Ms P has experienced and pain she has suffered for a significant amount of time. We hope Ms P’s mental health continues to improve and she continues in her recovery.

1. We have carefully considered Ms P’s complaint about Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust (the Trust).

2. We recognise how distressing it must have been for Ms P when she was unwell and thought her care and treatment was not as it should have been.

3. The complaint falls outside of our time limit and we have decided there is no good reason for us to put our time limit aside to consider it further.