A ward for adults with learning disabilities at Hollins Park Hospital in Warrington was closed after an anonymous whistleblower flagged patient safety concerns.
Issues on Byron Ward had been picked up through internal safeguarding processes, a committee report of Merseycare NHS Trust was told in January.
The ward at Hollins Park is an inpatient assessment and treatment facility for adults with learning disability and/or autism, who require specialist support.
The ward was temporarily closed in December 2024 following a review of CCTV footage which led to concerns about staffing issues and patient safety.
At a meeting last month, Jenny Hurst, acting chief nurse at Mersey Care NHS Trust, said an anonymous whistleblower had raised concerns.
The trust’s internal safeguarding processes had already picked up issues on the ward, but the tip-off led to the request to examine CCTV footage.
This was discussed by the trust’s board of directors in December at an extraordinary meeting.
Since then, random audits of footage had taken place to monitor “observations of care”.
No further details of the concerns have been released but the issue relates to “deliberate misconduct of staff”, according to a committee meeting minutes from the trust’s quality committee.
The Care Quality Commission ( CQC ) said it had received concerns about people’s welfare at the site and was liaising closely with the trust.
An internal investigation has begun as the trust expects the “highest professional standards” from its staff.
Mrs Hurst said the board had received assurance about the possibility of similar issues occurring elsewhere from the random audits of CCTV to monitor observations of care.
The Standard Operating Procedure had been updated to require a Band 6 registered nurse on each shift.
In addition, clinical leads are attending all areas including night shifts and “were available for supervision.”
The committee was told that the concerns raised anonymously to the CQC were “not from a patient safeguarding perspective, but were from a staff perspective and that the deliberate misconduct of staff was highly unusual.” Assurance was provided that the trust’s early warning systems were “effective.”
A further update will be provided at the next committee meeting.
A Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust spokesman said: “We can confirm an internal investigation has begun after we identified staffing issues and patient safety concerns which have affected one of our wards.
“We expect the highest professional standards from our workforce, at all times, and patient safety remains our highest priority.
“As a result, we have notified the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and our commissioners and will not be commenting during our investigations.”
