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"NHS 24 Mental Health Hub"

About: NHS 24 / Mental Health Hub

(as a service user),

I contacted NHS 24s Mental Health Hub for the second time recently as I was struggling with suicidal thoughts and struggling to keep myself safe. I was connected to an Advisor. I found them to be so rude and condescending, they made me feel like I was wasting their time. I just found them so rude and arrogant and kept asking me why I felt the need to phone back in when I already had an assessment by the Mental Health Assessment Unit and Out-of-Hours CPN over the phone.

They also kept asking me why I was struggling to keep myself safe. At the end of my previous call, that call handler told me to phone back should anything change or worsen so I did just that.

This call handler made me feel as if I was wasting their time, I found them rude and condescending. They made me wish I never called back in. I didn't find their manner good for the situation. It’s deeply concerning that they were allowed to speak to me the way they spoke to me.

I’m sorry that I’m struggling so much with my mental health at the moment and won’t be calling back. I’d rather act on my thoughts than speak to someone like them again. I feel one bad egg is enough to ruin the box. 

I felt like hanging up the phone on them, but knowing my luck they would have tried to call me back and/or given the nature of the call sent the Police or an Ambulance Crew to my door. But given what I felt was  arrogance, that was a worry for me and was the only reason why I never hung up on them and continued with the call. 

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Responses

Response from Shona Lawrence, Clinical Governance Lead, Nursing and Care, NHS 24 13 months ago
Shona Lawrence
Clinical Governance Lead, Nursing and Care,
NHS 24
Submitted on 14/03/2023 at 19:51
Published on Care Opinion at 19:51


picture of Shona Lawrence

Dear SurvivingPsychiatry

Thank you for sharing your experience of the NHS 24 Mental Health Hub on Care Opinion. I'm so sorry you have described a negative experience and I am keen to explore this in more detail.

To enable a review your contact, can I please ask that you kindly get in touch with me directly. You can call me on 07814 299944 or email at Patient.Experience@nhs24.scot.nhs.uk

Please be assured what you have described is not the experience we wish for any of our callers.

Just a reminder, should you require support, we also have the Breathing Space Service on 0800 83 85 87, Mon - Thurs 6pm - 2am and also Fri - Mon 6pm - 6am.

I hope to hear from you further to enable us to better understand your experience.

I wish you well meantime.

Shona

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Update posted by SurvivingPsychiatry (a service user)

Hi Shona.

Many thanks for your direct details. I will contact you tomorrow to discuss this call in more detail.

Best wishes

SurvivingPsychiatry

Response from Shona Lawrence, Clinical Governance Lead, Nursing and Care, NHS 24 13 months ago
Shona Lawrence
Clinical Governance Lead, Nursing and Care,
NHS 24
Submitted on 27/03/2023 at 12:05
Published on Care Opinion at 12:05


picture of Shona Lawrence

Hi Surviving Psychiatry

I hope you are doing well.

Thanks so much for contacting me directly with some additional detail which enabled us to review your feedback concerning your experience of calling our Mental Health Hub.

I believe you have today spoken directly with a member of staff within our Mental Health Hub who explained the findings of our review. I hope you found that discussion helpful. Our review found the staff member who managed your call did so in a professional manner at all times and utilised NHS 24's core values of dignity and respect, and care and compassion at all times.

I wish you well and hope that you continue tor reach out for mental health support when needed.

Thank you again for bringing your experience to our attention.

Take care

Shona

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