Mental Health & Learning Disability Inpatient Bed Census, 2014

Introduction

This report presents an overview of the results of the first Mental Health & Learning Disability Inpatient Bed Census, carried out by the Scottish Government and NHS Boards as at midnight, 29 October 2014. One objective of the census is to provide evidence for Commitment 26 of the Mental Health Strategy for 2012 to 2015.

"We will undertake an audit of who is in hospital on a given day and for what reason to give a better understanding of how the inpatient estate is being used and the degree to which that differs across Scotland."

- Commitment 26, Mental Health Strategy for 2012-2015^[2]

The Mental Health & Learning Disability Inpatient Bed Census will also be used to provide data to help us progress 'The Keys to Life: Improving quality of life for people with learning disabilities' Recommendation 51:

"………..establish the Scottish data on out of area placements and report on its findings on how Scotland builds the capacity needed to deliver the specialist services required more locally with an outcome that by 2018 people with learning disabilities and complex care needs who are currently in facilities outwith Scotland should be supported to live nearer their family in Scotland"

- Recommendation 51, 'The Keys to Life: Improving quality of life for people with learning disabilities^[3]

This data will help evidence current learning disability bed services in Scotland and enable NHS Boards to review the needs of those with complex needs in out of area placements with a view to building the capacity and commissioning local or regional services in Scotland, where appropriate. An additional report focusing solely on learning disabilities will be published later in 2015.

The census will also enhance the Scottish Government's and NHS Scotland's understanding of mental health, addiction and learning disability services more generally, and about the patients who use these services. This analytical evidence will inform policy development, service planning (both nationally and locally).

To enable further research and statistical analysis, extracts of the Mental Health and Learning Disability Inpatient Bed Census data may be made available for approved researchers from late 2015.

Scope of census

The census covered:

• every patient occupying a psychiatric, addiction or learning disability inpatient bed in an NHS Scotland facility on the census date (midnight at the end of 29th October 2014).
• every mental health, addiction or learning disability patient whose care is funded by NHS Scotland, but is being treated in a facility that is out with NHS Scotland (e.g. in a local authority care home, in a private hospital, in a NHS England facility), on the census date (midnight at the end of 29^th October 2014).

The data collected is designed to provide an understanding of who is in hospital funded by NHS Scotland on a given day and for what reason. The analysis presented here aims to give a detailed understanding of how the inpatient estate in Scotland is being used and the degree to which that differs across Scotland.

Annex A contains a list of facilities which participated in the census, along with the number of available beds, occupied beds and occupancy rates for each facility.

Information is presented on a range of demographic and clinical breakdowns, including an additional section focusing on Forensic Services.

As this is the first year of the census, the data collection systems and quality assurance processes in place are still being developed and therefore the statistics shown here should not be considered as National or Official Statistics, but are data under development. All figures are provisional and may be subject to change in future publications.

Accompanying data

An accompanying spreadsheet containing the data behind this report, as well as some summary information at NHS Board level will also be made available at the following link:

http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Health

NHS Boards will be issued with a more detailed analysis of their data at a later date. We are unable to present this level of detail due to small numbers and so to protect patient confidentiality.

Further Analysis

During 2015, further reports based on the census are planned for publication. These include:

• a more detailed report covering learning disability inpatient beds and,
• a report covering mental health, addiction or learning disability inpatients who are funded by NHS Scotland but who are treated outwith NHS Scotland.

Future plans for the census

A repeat of the census is intended to be carried out next year, and any methodological changes will be informed by this year's census. The next census will expand to include hospital-based complex care patients^[4] as there will be an overlap with the Mental Health & Learning Disability Inpatient Bed Census. This should make the data collection process more simple for data providers (i.e. staff in NHS Boards, Hospitals and Care Homes).

The scope and content of the census will be consulted upon with NHS Boards during 2015.