Staff holidays blamed for audit delay after death

“Staff holidays” have been blamed for a nine-month delay to a safety audit at an NHS mental health trust, which was ordered after a young mother’s suicide.

An admin error meant Natasha Adams, 25, was not referred for a home visit within 24 hours of visiting Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham, with suicidal thoughts last August. She was found dead the next day.

In December, an investigation said the trust should audit other cases, but “no action has been taken”, said coroner James Bennett. He said the trust’s clinical governance committee needed to approve the audit process, which was unlikely to happen until September “because of staff holidays”.