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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hollins on 2015-12-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in the light of Mazars’ report investigating unexpected deaths at Southern Healthcare, they intend to establish a national review into premature deaths for people with mental illness, in addition to those with learning disabilities.

Lord Prior of Brampton

Regulation 17 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2010 requires registered mental health providers to notify the Care Quality Commission (CQC) about deaths of people detained or liable to be detained under the Mental Health Act 1983. In addition, the CQC monitors data provided by the Health and Social Care Information Centre through the Mental Health Minimum Data Set on deaths of mental health hospital patients.

The CQC will be undertaking a wider review into the investigation of deaths in a sample of all types of National Health Service trust (acute, mental health and community trusts) in different parts of the country. As part of this review, the CQC will assess whether opportunities for prevention of death have been missed, for example by late diagnosis of physical health problems.

There are currently no plans to establish a national review into premature deaths of people with mental illness.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hollins on 2015-12-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the remit and funding of the National Learning Disabilities Mortality Review of premature deaths in people with learning disabilities includes a review of the investigations carried out by NHS Trusts into unexpected deaths for that patient group; and if not whether they intend to alter the remit.

Lord Prior of Brampton

The Learning Disabilities Mortality Review Programme is managed by the University of Bristol on behalf of NHS England. The contract with the University focusses on supporting local reviews of premature deaths of people with learning disabilities; the investigation processes and draws together learning from the reviews. The remit for this work does not include a review of the investigations undertaken by NHS trusts into unexpected deaths for this patient group. There is no current intention to alter this remit.

The current programme is piloting local reviews of premature deaths of people with learning disabilities, as the first stage of rolling these out across England by 2018. These reviews will be the key first step to ensure local processes are in place to inform the co-ordination of future investigations of premature deaths of people with learning disabilities by NHS trusts. There will be clear protocols put in place to ensure that any unexpected deaths are subject to a multidisciplinary review, covering the totality of the person’s care, to assess the causes of death and any actions which could have been taken to prevent that death.

The Mortality Review Programme will provide strategic support for the local review process, develop a core data set for use by local review teams and support both the development of action plans in response to a death and the identification of recurrent themes at local, regional and national levels. The case reviews will support health and social care professionals, and others, to identify, and take action on, the avoidable contributory factors leading to premature deaths by people with learning disabilities whilst the identification of regional and national themes will inform wider action.