A "DISTURBING" number of violent attacks were recorded at a Hampshire mental health hospital, a report has revealed.

The report from the Care Quality Commision recorded 334 incidents of physical abuse or violence involving patients at Vista Independent Hospital in seven months.

There were 272 incidents of physical assaults on staff, with some needing hospital treatment.

The CQC said police had been involved in 22 incidents.

The incidents were uncovered in an unannounced inspection in November.

Karen Wilson, CQC head of inspection, said: "The number of violent incidents is disturbing - yet we found little evidence that the provider had the specialist skills or systems to learn from these incidents and prevent them happening in the first place."


In a statement, the hospital said: "The publication of the CQC report of their inspectors’ findings in November 2014 is an uncompromising catalogue of the issues that have faced the new clinical and management team at Vista Healthcare.

"The formal warnings reinforce the importance and urgency that the new Vista management, and the specialist team they brought in, have been and are bringing to making and sustaining the improvements for patients.

"Following the inspection in November 2014 a voluntary standstill was put on patient admissions and as a first priority immediate steps were taken by clinical, care staff and management working with stakeholders, patients and relatives to ensure patient (service user) safety and quality of care.

"Since then the board, led by its new chairman, Simon Harrison, has given its full and active support to the staff and new clinical and management team to set and sustain the highest standards of care.

"Working with NHS England, CQC as well as regional and local stakeholders considerable strides have been made to meet the targets set by CQC at a difficult and testing time for specialist Health and Social Care services throughout the country."