Woman with eating disorder felt 'unsafe' and 'petrified' on mental health unit

• ITV Wales' Health reporter Katie Fenton has the story

A 21-year-old woman felt "petrified and "unsafe" while undergoing treatment for an eating disorder on mental health units in south Wales.

Georgia Taylor, from Brynna, near Pontyclun, said her physical and mental health deteriorated after she was admitted to psychiatric wards in Llantrisant and Bridgend.

Georgia said she developed heart problems and lost so much weight as an inpatient that she was eventually rushed to a medical ward for lifesaving treatment.

It follows a report by mental health charity, Mind Cymru, that raises concerns around mental health inpatient care and safety. It highlights staff shortages are negatively impacting patients.

The Welsh Government has said its commitment to prioritising mental health is reflected in a £2 million investment into improving the quality and safety of the service.

Georgia began to struggle with an eating disorder at the age of fourteen.

"A lot of my friends were going on diets and it's very big on social media to lose weight and to fit into the norm of looking beautiful and slim," she explained.

"But I took it too far. I struggled with my eating disorder for a number of years before it got very serious."

Once she turned eighteen, Georgia had to be transferred from CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) to Adult Services.

During a wait for support that Georgia said lasted several months, she relapsed and was sectioned to a mental health unit at Royal Glamorgan Hospital. She was transferred to Princess of Wales Hospital two weeks later.

Whilst on the units, Georgia felt that staff were not equipped to deal with those struggling with eating disorders. This meant behaviours connected to her eating disorder often flew "under the radar" and she continued to lose weight.

She said: "I couldn't grasp why nobody understood that this was really difficult for me and putting a meal in front of me isn't going to work.

"They need to have more training with eating disorders. Because there was no bed for me anywhere else, it was like I was just there, and nobody knew what to do with me. So they kind of just watched me get worse.

"That was really difficult for my family, because they were relieved that I had finally received a bed in a hospital, which I really needed, but I continued to get worse."

Georgia added how the use of agency staff meant there were inconsistencies in her care, which she claims led to mistakes being made. She recounted how she was able to hide food from the staff who were not familiar with her treatment plan.

Patients on her ward ranged from people with schizophrenia, depression and addiction issues. She said fights would occasionally break out, which made her feel unsafe.

She began to think: "This is not the environment I want to be in, this is not an environment I feel safe in."

Remaining in a psychiatric unit for three months, Georgia's condition became so severe she was eventually sent to a specialist eating disorder unit in England.

"I really needed that help, I was desperate. I was hopeful for my life to begin again. It did eventually, but it took so much longer than it needed to.

"All of that time wasted where I had been deteriorating with limited support could have been prevented if I had a smoother transition from CAMHS to adult services.

"It made the recovery period longer and so much more painful."

Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board said it has established an adult mental health Inpatient improvement board to ensure the delivery of high quality, safe and effective care.

It also highlighted a recent Health Inspectorate Wales review of inpatient mental health services at Royal Glamorgan Hospital, which acknowledged significant improvements.

Mind Cymru has urged the Welsh Government to “take the lead” in improving care for mental health inpatients. It wants to see a focus on tackling staff shortages, care planning and the use of restraints at mental health inpatient units across Wales.

Sue O'Leary, Director of Mind Cymru, said: "The Welsh Government has the chance to take the lead in caring for and protecting people who need inpatient mental health support. This report is centred around the voices of people who have experienced first-hand the ways in which inpatient care can help, but can also be dangerously inadequate and lacking in dignity and respect.

“The rising tide of mental health need in Wales is significant, but we need moretransparent data to understand people’s experiences of care, otherwise we’ll neverbe able to fully address the problems.

"Increasing staffing, updating the Mental Health Act code of practice for Wales, and protecting patient safety and rights will all go a long way to help."

A Welsh Government spokesperson said they have recently invested £2 million in the NHS Executive as "improving the quality and safety of our mental health services is a priority for us."

They also aim to implement a 'Mental Health Patient Safety Programme', which has a focus on inpatient care.

The spokesperson added: “We recently consulted on our draft Mental Health and Well-being Strategy which has been developed in collaboration with a range of partners, including service users and carers, setting our vision for improvements over the next 10 years.”

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