Formerly medium secure units, the move to the 'blended' service means that patients will no longer need to move to a new site if they are transferring between low and medium secure services. These moves can be unsettling for people who have built good relationships with staff and other patients at their existing service. Moving forward, Walmer ward and Blossom ward will be referred to as secure wards.
This change has been led by the Kent, Surrey and Sussex Adult Secure Provider Collaborative - a coalition of NHS trusts and independent providers led by Sussex Partnership which are working together to improve how mental health services for adults who require secure inpatient care are commissioned and delivered.
The move is part of a nationwide Women's Secure Pathway Transformation programme led by NHS England and builds on learning from co-produced programmes, including the national pilot for Women's Secure Blended Services.
Other local initiatives include the launch of the Women's Outreach Service, which was developed by the Provider Collaborative and is hosted by Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership, to work with services in Sussex, Kent and Surrey that refer patients to women's secure services. The purpose is to enable women with mental health needs to stay where they are - for example on a Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit - with the right support to work towards returning to the community.
Staff from the Brighton Women's Centre have also been commissioned by the Provider Collaborative to work with patients to support their stay on Walmer ward and Blossom ward and the two other women's secure wards in Kent, Surrey and Sussex to help them prepare for when they leave secure mental health services.
The aim of these developments is to improve the experience for patients and reduce the length of time they spend in secure services.