257% increase in mixed sex wards in NHS over 6 years

[Theeyeballsinthesky]

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/oct/15/alarm-at-rise-in-use-of-mixed-sex-wards-in-nhs-england-hospitals

“Caitlin (not her real name) worked on an acute mental health ward in a private hospital which switched from 12 women-only beds to 15 mixed beds. “Women on our ward often had a history of sexual or domestic abuse,” she said. “Some had tried to end their life in the wake of this, and a lot of them felt intimidated by the level of aggression shown by some men on the ward.”

we all know there are issues with resourcing but you’d hope at least in MH they’d not have mixed sex

(Also astonished guardian has reported this as mixed sex!)

It's been reported accurately because it's The Observer, not The Guardian, which is its sister (sibling?) paper.

They do wedge in the trans issue at the end of the article though, even though they don't really explain the relevance.

It's shocking that there are so many breaches. I despair though of anything changing in the current climate with the current government.

Yeah, I saw this article this morning and thought the trans issue had been rather shoehorned in at the end.

I’m guessing it’s the constant pressure for beds. Hard to maintain single sex if you just don’t have enough beds? It’s awful though 🙁

They call it mixed sex because they're referring to men and women sharing wards. This isn't about trans people on wards - obviously because if trans women ARE women, then it's not a mixed sex ward (other opinions are available)

I was really shocked when a friend spent a few days in a mixed sex assessment ward. We are not talking separate rooms on a big ward, she was in the same bay as men.

This was in Ninewells in Dundee.