The CQC downgraded the rating for the mental health crisis services from “good” to “requires improvement” after the March inspection.
According to its report, trust staff “did not always demonstrate the duty of candour and apologise” when patients were detained longer than legally permitted.
Managers claimed “a lack of availability of inpatient beds and wider system pressures” caused delays, inspectors wrote, but “did not have a reporting mechanism for this”.
People can be detained in a place of safety for up to 24 hours pending an assessment if they appear to have a mental disorder and authorities believe it’s necessary on safety grounds, according to the NHS, external.
The CQC found centres at St Martin’s Hospital in Canterbury and Littlebrook Hospital in Dartford did not give users “direct access to outside space and fresh air”.
Staff at assessment centres were “unaware” of translator services and used Google translate instead, inspectors said.