"No real follow up care"

My daughter was admitted to one of the mental health wards at Forth Valley Royal Hospital last month, as a "planned admission" for around three weeks.

This admission happened a month after it was first spoken about and on arrival it was clear there was not a "plan" in place. This was eventually rectified and a plan was put in place for her care in hospital.

However, on discharge, there was no real follow up care. An appointment with the outpatient psychiatrist nine days later at which referral to follow up support was then discussed, despite this being asked for a number of times while in hospital, and discussed prior to admission.

My daughter had voiced her concerns to the psychiatrist prior to admission that it would be pointless to admit her, give support and treatment in hospital, then be discharged with no support to maintain changes made in hospital. She was assured that that was the good thing about having a planned admission, that this could be arranged.

It has now been almost three weeks since discharge and aside from seeing the psychiatrist once for less than fifteen minutes to discuss referral to other services, my daughter has had no checks on her physical or mental wellbeing. She is struggling and on contacting adult mental health services to get her support we have been told they are snowed under and have sent referrals but cannot put a timescale on when she will be seen.

I worry that the time taken for referrals, a complaint to be dealt with, or even a response on this website, is all time that my daughters physical and mental health is going downhill. She needs help now and as a family we feel helpless and very let down after the promise of a "planned admission".