One day survey by the Mental Health Act Commission of acute adult psychiatric inpatient wards in England and Wales

The nature and purpose of acute psychiatric wards: The tompkins acute ward study

“…Acute ward nurses are, at times, criticised for spending time in the ward office (Ford et al 1998). And yet the many demands of patient managements and the wider administration of care translate into a lot of work on the telephone and a significant amount of writing reports, applications, etc., that nurses increasingly complain about (Deacon 2003).…”

“…A series of recent reports have highlighted difficulties such as: deficits in leadership, clinical skills and risk management (Standing Nursing and Midwifery Advisory Committee 1999); lack of nurse-patient interaction and therapeutic activities (Ford et al 1998); a high level of chaos and crisis-driven care (Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health 1998); and a climate of fear, untherapeutic conditions and overworked staff (MIND 2004). These concerns have been echoed in several research studies.…”

Adverse Incidents, Patient Flow and Nursing Workforce Variables on Acute Psychiatric Wards: The Tompkins Acute Ward Study

“…Alternatively, the current pressure for acute admission beds (Ford, Durcan, & Warner, 2005) could be relieved by the provision of alternative services or additional capacity, thus reducing the risk of periods of rapid and intense patient turnover that appear to contribute to incidents.…”

Service attachment: The relative contributions of ward climate perceptions and attachment anxiety and avoidance in male inpatients with psychosis

“…These individuals tend to be young males with a diagnosis of schizophrenia (Davies, 2004;Davison, 2004;Lelliot, 1996). In recent years, various government initiatives With increasing emphasis being placed on care in the community (Quirk & Lelliot, 2001), and increasingly pressured acute wards, it is felt that inpatient settings are being neglected (Ford, Durcan, Warner, Hardy & Muijen, 1998). The Department of Health (2002) The definition of relational security has been further developed by Kennedy (2002) who talks about the quantitative aspects of relational security (i.e.…”