Patient's wound care not investigated properly

What happened

Mrs M was detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 after cutting her wrists.

She said the Trust had covered up failings when it investigated her complaint about her treatment. She complained about her medication, the care of her wounds and the discharge arrangements.

What we found

The Trust had properly investigated the complaint and the discharge was reasonable, as was the painkilling medication it prescribed when it discharged Mrs M.

However, the Trust had made a mistake in the complaint response about when Mrs M's wound dressings were changed. It also did not keep proper records about wound care and there were failings in how staff recorded Mrs M's medication while she was in hospital.

Putting it right

The Trust agreed to interview the person who had changed the wound dressings and take appropriate action; to audit care plans and medication charts to see what went wrong in this case; and to put in place any improvements needed to prevent something similar happening again.

The Trust agreed to write to Mrs M and apologise and to send her a copy of the action plan for improvements.