CEO calls for urgent action on children stuck in A&E
Matthew Trainer warned A&Es are increasingly becoming the ‘default place of safety’ for children in crisis who have nowhere else to go.
He said:
This is a shameful situation, and it is getting worse every year. These children do not need hospital care.
They need a place to live, but no other part of the health and care system can provide them with a roof over their heads.
They can stay for weeks or even months, with one looked after child remaining in the department for 77 days, another for 44.
These two recent cases alone are estimated to have cost us more than £270,000 in staffing and support.
Matthew added:
Some people ask why we don’t admit these children to our paediatric ward. It’s often because their behaviour is aggressive and would pose too much of a risk on a ward of sick children.
Staff have experienced serious incidents while caring for children in distress, including physical assaults, with one member of staff injured after being struck with a knuckle duster.
Previously, these patients were cared for in open areas of the department in full view of other children and families or were moved and put into a side room. It was very difficult to manage children in a crisis safely in a busy, noisy environment and we had many complaints from other parents visiting with their own children.
One year ago, we opened a dedicated safe space room to manage this growing challenge. It provides a more contained environment where young people can be supported away from the main department. The room has a bed, a storage space, a bathroom with a shower and large beanbag, as well as adjustable mood lighting.
The walls have also been defaced (pictured below).
The room can only accommodate one child at a time, however, despite multiple young people often coming to A&E in crisis at the same time.
Sarah Kelly, Children’s Emergency Department Matron, said:
The safe space has made a real difference, but it’s not enough on its own.
We’re seeing more children in crisis, staying longer, with increasingly complex needs and without the right support in the community, that pressure doesn’t go away.