I know, I know. It’s that jolly season. But I’m continuing my miserable series of deconstructing health and social care documents in true bah humbug fashion. Regardless. Once you start to read these papers carefully you realise what a sham a lot of this documentation is. Here’s Oxfordshire’s Winterbourne View stocktake summary. This was written before LB died. And it’s complete billy bullshit.

For example;

All those whose services are commissioned by Oxfordshire have received reviews and the Learning Disability Team is actively involved with them and their families to ensure they are well supported, they are receiving active treatment, and plans are made together for when they are ready for discharge to the community.

I’m always a bit suspicious when the same adjective turns up in the same paragraph in ‘official’ documents. ‘Active’ pops up twice in the same sentence here and, funnily enough, it’s the last word I’d associate with the Oxfordshire Learning Disability Team. Sloth-like maybe. Or slow loris even.  Active? Nah. The sad and sorry story of our experience with this team will emerge eventually but believe me, it wasn’t a story of activity. Of any sort.

Apparently a ‘register of all admissions and discharges is maintained and a monthly meeting reviews progress.‘ Seriously? How do the experiences of the patients in STATT fit with these claims? LB wasn’t the only (local) dude languishing there for months. And, a slightly off topic point but one that needs shouting from the rooftops; if the Learning Disability Team were actively involved with the patients in STATT, how could they not know of the appalling level of provision there?

[Sorry. I need a moment to scrape my brain off the floor again. It repeatedly implodes whenever I think about this… A mix of intense pain/horror/disbelief/incredulity and rage and a screaming HOW/WHY????…………………………….

Thank you.]

If Oxfordshire are turning out this shite, how many other areas are spinning their ‘post Winterbourne accounts’? Dressing up their actions? Does anyone check the accuracy of these reports? The difference between what is written and what actually happens?

This stocktake is part of the Winterbourne View Joint Improvement Programme. Something I have little confidence in. (The ‘little’ bit I have relates to Bill Mumford taking over the gig in the last few weeks as he seems a sensible, grounded guy). We almost need a grassroots movement of relevant families googling their local ‘Winterbourne Stocktake’ summaries and checking if they bear any resemblance to their/their dude’s experience*.

The trouble is, we didn’t know these reports were available online before LB died. We were too busy trying (and failing) to get appropriate support for him. We didn’t have the time or energy to do this. Even if we had known, we’d have worried that any troublesome actions on our part could have potential consequences for LB.

Wrong. So completely wrong. On so many different levels.

Take it away Mike…

*I think the summaries are available within (buried deep) the minutes/agenda/paperwork for the Health and Wellbeing Board for each area. The bare bones of each summary is available here.