Mrs J complained about the care and treatment she received at the Trust between 2006 and 2013. She said she did not agree with her diagnosis and doctors did not discuss this with her at the time. She said there were family history errors in her medical records, the Trust had lost some of her records, and she was dissatisfied with how it investigated her complaint.
What happened
Mrs J was diagnosed with a personality disorder in 2006, but had attended the Trust since 1999 with similar health problems. She complained to the Trust about how doctors made their diagnosis about her condition, and also errors in her medical records. She later complained that information about her complaint had been uploaded into her medical records, and that when she asked for copies of her file she found that records relating to three different episodes of care were missing.
What we found
We did not uphold this complaint. Psychiatrists at the Trust followed the relevant standards in how they assessed Mrs J and made their diagnosis. We also found evidence that they communicated this to Mrs J at the time.
Mrs J said there were entries in her medical records which made allegations about family members and she wanted these to be removed, but we found that these records showed that Mrs J had made the allegations. The Trust handled her complaint appropriately by allowing her to include a statement in her records setting out the issues that she disputed.
The Trust should not have uploaded Mrs J's complaint or lost her records. But we were satisfied that the Trust had already apologised for these errors and taken sufficient action to show what it had learned from the complaint. There were failings in handling her complaint, but we were satisfied that the Trust had already responded appropriately to these concerns.
Devon Partnership NHS Trust
Devon
Did not involve complainant adequately in the process
Delayed replying to complaint
Came to an unsound decision