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Trustwide Patient Deaths Since 2018

Reference: 24-25306

Date response sent: 14/11/2024

Details of enquiry

1)

  1. i) The number of inpatient deaths within your Mental Health Trust since 2018.
  2. ii) The number of self-inflicted deaths by inpatients within your Mental Health Trust since 2018.

iii) The number of self-inflicted deaths by those under the care of your Mental Health Trust, at the time of their death, since 2018.

  1. iv) The number of reportable patient safety events relating to inpatients within your Mental Health Trust since 2018.

2)

  1. i) Summary details of inpatient deaths within your Mental Health Trust since 2018.
  2. ii) Summary details of self-inflicted deaths by inpatients within your Mental Health Trust since 2018.

iii) Summary details of self-inflicted deaths by those under the care of your Mental Health Trust, at the time of their death, since 2018.

  1. iv) Summary details of reportable patient safety events relating to inpatients within your Mental Health Trust since 2018.

Response sent

1)

  1. i) The number of inpatient deaths within your Mental Health Trust since 2018.

Not applicable – The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust is a specialist Mental Health Trust providing outpatient services only.

  1. ii) The number of self-inflicted deaths by inpatients within your Mental Health Trust since 2018.

Not applicable – The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust is a specialist Mental Health Trust providing outpatient services only.

iii) The number of self-inflicted deaths by those under the care of your Mental Health Trust, at the time of their death, since 2018.

Using incidents where a coronial outcome has confirmed a death as self-inflicted, and for those patients actively under our care, we are unable to provide this data as it is numbers which are equal to 5 or less than 5. It is the NHS Digital standard not to provide data where the numbers are smaller than 5 as this may lead to identification of individuals.

The Trust also abides by the Common Law Duty Of Confidentiality which restricts the identification of deceased individuals who may have received services from the Trust. For more details on this please click on this link: Section 2: The Common Law of Confidentiality and Consent

When an individual has died, information relating to that individual remains confidential under the Common Law, by which all NHS Trusts abide.. The key principle is that information confided should not be used or disclosed further, except, as originally understood by the confider, or with their subsequent permission.

  1. Whilst The Duty Of Confidence extends after the death of individuals, there are other Acts which permit certain authorities to reveal personal data of deceased persons under certain criteria, for example:
    1. The Public Records Act 1958, places an ethical obligation to the relatives of the deceased exists, which permits the use and disclosure of the information within them in only limited circumstances.
    2. The Access to Health Records Act 1990 permits access to the records of a deceased person by those with a claim arising out of that individual’s death.

This right of access is negated however if the deceased individual concerned requested that a note denying access be included within the record prior to their death (this might be part of a formal advance directive).

  1. The data may already be publicly available under other legal regimes

The Trust recognises that the information you have requested might already be in the public domain, published under a different legal framework. This does not affect the Trust’s belief and adherence to the principles of confidentiality after death, as set our above.

In order to be helpful to you, we have provided below examples of potentially alternative sources of the data requested.

  1. You may be interested to note that there is no equivalent statutory provision in relation to social care records. Local authorities generally provide access to social care records through the Freedom of Information Act. However, the guidance issued by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) on s.41 of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) means that relatives could pursue a case for breach of confidence ICO: Practical guidance: Information about the deceased).
  2. Another example could be that whenever Inquests are held, linked to a Prevention of Future Deaths report (Regulation 28 Report to Prevent Future Deaths), the name of the deceased will be published and placed into the public domain by a coroner. This does not cover every death in the country.

It might be that the data you seek could be reached via either of the following publicly available links; one shows data by name of the deceased, and the other shows a listing by Trust.

  1. iv) The number of reportable patient safety events relating to inpatients within your Mental Health Trust since 2018.

Not applicable – The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust is a specialist Mental Health Trust providing outpatient services only.

2)

  1. i) Summary details of inpatient deaths within your Mental Health Trust since 2018.

Not applicable – The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust is a specialist Mental Health Trust providing outpatient services only.

  1. ii) Summary details of self-inflicted deaths by inpatients within your Mental Health Trust since 2018.

Not applicable – The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust is a specialist Mental Health Trust providing outpatient services only.

iii) Summary details of self-inflicted deaths by those under the care of your Mental Health Trust, at the time of their death, since 2018.

Please see our response to question 1) iii, above.

  1. iv) Summary details of reportable patient safety events relating to inpatients within your Mental Health Trust since 2018.

Not applicable – The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust is a specialist Mental Health Trust providing outpatient services only.

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