Winterbourne View Hospital Incident: Reflective Account and Analysis

This reflective account examines the Winterbourne View Hospital incident, focusing on service operational management, patient abuse, and group dynamics. The report discusses the physical and psychological abuse suffered by patients with learning disabilities, exposed by a Panorama investigation. It highlights the failures of government bodies and regulators in addressing complaints, leading to the hospital's closure and legal action against employees. The account delves into the importance of patient care, ethical practices, and the application of group dynamics theories, such as Tuckman's stages and Belbin's team roles, in healthcare settings. The author recommends improvements in teamwork, cooperation, and the implementation of best practices to ensure quality care and rebuild patient trust. The report concludes with a call for healthcare organizations to prioritize patient well-being and ethical conduct, drawing lessons from the Winterbourne View case to prevent future incidents.

REFLECTIVE ACCOUNT

This reflective account has been prepared to share my approach and attitude to the
presentation task. It will make comments on theories related to group dynamics and behavior.
Service operational management plays an important role in hospital venture so that individuals
gets best of the treatment from various doctors, nurses and caretakers. This operational
management comes into play when effective services are rendered to patients so that their needs
and demands gets fulfilled in cost effective manner. In relation to the above topic, the
organisation undertaken as a scenario is the Winterbourne View hospital which is a private
hospital situated in Bristol. The report will discuss the physical and psychological abuse suffered
by the patients with their learning disabilities and the challenging behaviour.
Report states that Panorama investigation broadcast on the television exposed the
physical and psychological abuse which is done by the doctors, nurses and caretakers with the
patients and whole of the scenario developed a bad impact on the hospital in the eyes of patients
as well as the other individuals who are living in UK. In relation to the above incident,
government bodies and also the local social service and main regulators NHS and CQC has
received many complaints from the patients but the mistreatment were continued. The old
practice were still followed and no action were taken up by any of the authority.
However, after so long, local body considered the harassment and the public funded
hospital was shut down showing the actions were taken against many employees of the cited
hospital firm. There was also a clinical psychologist who reviewed the footage describing the
abuse as “torture”. In total 11 employees were taken behind the bars considering 9 caretakers and
2 nurses. The practice so followed by Winterbourne View hospital were quite wrong and it has
seriously influenced the activity of cited business enterprise. Further, the goodwill which firm
had from long years were also shattered and at the end it leads to the shutdown. Patients are
always need of good care, love and support from the healthcare professionals and it is their
utmost duty to take care of it. If patients gets the better treatment then they will come back to the
cited firm again if they feel ill or sick. Local social service along with the national regulations
has set some of the policies and procedures and the hospital unit has to work by considering the
same in effective manner.
If patients are halted and not given proper care then where they will ask for the justice
regarding the sickness which they are suffering from. Thus, it is found that local body has to take
severe against such regulations and give the healthcare professionals punishment regarding the

wrong things which they have done. The main harassment is done to the disabled people because
they have the fear in their mind and do not speak against the injustice which is happening with
them.
The main role of the hospital ventures is to make aware the individuals regarding the
harmful diseases which is existing in the outside environment and also the way they can keep
themselves fit by not consuming any sort of alcohol and smoking products. Apart from it, it is
also necessary for the firm to take care of the individuals in the best effective manner so that the
venture can achieve their goals and objectives in specific manner.
Health care organisations comprises different workers and they are bound to give
effective treatment to the patients so that venture gets a competitive edge over the rival hospital
firms who are working in same industry. Further, the target of government body is also to reduce
the effect of harmful disease by undertaking various actions. The scenario depicts a bad picture
in the minds of the other patients of Winterbourne View hospital and it was utmost necessary to
take legal actions against the hospital venture. However, after revealing, other patients stated that
the monstrous behaviour was done from a long time but no appeals were made
Health care professionals are advised to give quality of services to the patients so that
hospital venture can make effective goodwill in the eyes of the customers. Their bad behaviour
can influence the organisation performance up to great extent and this can also lead into the
dissolution of the firm. The same thing happened with the cited hospital venture and the
employees who have committed such a crime has been sent behind the bars. Further, this present
work has been done in the group and all the people who involved in making this presentation has
really considered the relevant data in effective manner. Further, data has been collected from
varied sources seeking the in-depth analysis of the same in order to make the report more
productive and efficient.
Group dynamics in relation to the present scenario will play a crucial role as it is
considered as a system of behaviour as well as the psychological process within the social group.
Further, the study of the group dynamics will certainly help in decision making behaviour,
tracking the spread of the disease within the society and also coming up with new ideas and
solution in order to solve a specific problem. NHS is a body in UK who frames plans and
policies so the rights and interest of the patients does not get affected and they receive the utmost
care from the different healthcare professionals. Disability can be caused to anyone and it is

necessary for workers to take care of them so that they can be recovered in quick time period.
However, it is found that workers usually able to give best of the performance when they are kept
in a team. Their performance get enhanced and are able to give the best result to achieve their
individual and organisation goals and objectives.
The theory of group dynamics can be also taken into consideration in order to understand
the working in group in effective manner. As per the Tuckman theory of group development,
their exist four major phases of group development and these are Forming, Storming, Norming,
Performing, etc. The inventor stated that these theories plays an important role for team to grow
and face up the challenges which persist in the organisation. Moreover, it also helps in finding
the right solution for planning the work and delivering the right result in cost effective manner.
Hospital venture generally tends to work in a team and the members in team comprises of
professional doctors, nurses and caretakers who do relatively well in order to give patients best of
the services so that they can achieve their set goals and objectives.
Further, I will suggest each and every business venture to increase the cooperation and
attraction with the patients so that their exist harmony in the enterprise. This will also result in
getting effective result and firm will be able to generate more of the revenue from the treatment
of the patients. Further, the case study stated that the torture which is done with the patients leads
to more illness and sickness to the patients and in result with it, some tried to jump from the
second floor as well.
Moreover, I would also recommend hospital venture to promote working in team more
precisely because effective coordination will definitely result into better performance of the
business enterprise. Belbin theory for team roles has stated different behaviours which individual
usually at the place where he/she works. This generally differ from one individual to the other as
well. The different team roles which has been specified in Belbin theory are resource
investigator, team worker, coordinator, plant, specialist, monitor evaluator, shaper, implementer
and complete finisher. If an individual possess all these roles then the team members will be
boosted up to work with the best of the dedication in order to achieve the individual and
organisation goals and objectives.
Further, I have seen the problem which persist in Winterbourne View hospital and I will
recommend both private and government hospital to implement the theories which has been
discussed above for efficient functioning. Moreover, the practices which were followed were not

up to the mark and it has declined the patients trust from the hospital venture. However, the
victims were sent behind the bars and now it is necessary for the employees who are working in
hospital firms to work with best of their enthusiasm in order to cure patient’s health and also the
disease which they are facing.
Further, there were different quality issues as well and it is necessary for the hospital
venture to consider these problems so that patient’s gets best of the treatment and the disease
which they are suffering from is recovered within specific time period. Hospital firms should
have adequate beds so that patients gets allotted the same when the sickness is high and they do
not face any problem. Further, equipment’s and technology also need to be hi tech so that
patients gets recovered within the specific duration

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