You are here: investigations & inquiries
Investigations & inquiries
When do we investigate?
If we think that someone with a mental illness or learning disability is not getting the right care and treatment we will investigate. We usually find out about cases through our visits to individuals or services. We might also follow up on a call to our advice line, or if we see something in a service user's paperwork that concerns us. Sometimes after initial investigations we find nothing of concern. Other times we want to look further into the case.
We will do a more in depth investigation if we think the problem might be serious and that other individuals may be experiencing similar problems. We are particularly keen to investigate when there have been mistakes that we believe other professionals could learn from. The aim of investigations is to help make sure that the same things don't happen again for other people in similar circumstances. We publish the results and recommendations from our investigations. We then follow up with services to find out what changes they have made in response to our recommendations.
Formal Inquiries
The Commission has the power to conduct formal independent inquiries. These have a similar status to court proceedings and will be carried out only in very extremely serious cases. Scottish Ministers also have the power to request that the Commission conducts a formal inquiry.
Case study — Justice Denied
We received a call from a housing association after a woman living in their supported accommodation reported a serious sexual assault. They were concerned that Ms A was not getting the protection and support she needed and wanted our advice. A Commission officer looked into their concerns and contacted professionals involved in Ms A's care. Our initial investigation found that Ms A had been subject to many more serious sexual attacks and was not being adequately protected. We decided to carry out an in-depth investigation, because of the seriousness of Ms A's situation. We also believed that other people in a similar position to Ms A could be at a risk. Our investigation team looked at health and social work notes, interviewed professionals involved in Ms A's care, and looked at research and policy relevant to the case. We then produced a report and made a number of recommendations to services across Scotland.
- Contact us if you are concerned about your own, or someone else's care and treatment and would like us to look into it.
