From BBC: “Psychiatric patients are being denied access to period products in secure units, aĀ new reportĀ has found.
Hat, 26, said they had to wear the same pad for days or put tissue in their pants after staff refused items for ‘safety reasons.’
Their study into patients’ experiences has been backed by the National Survivor User Network.
The NHS said it: ‘expects all hospitals to give patients access to the essentials of daily life.’
Hat, who uses gender neutral pronouns, felt compelled to do their own research after a ‘humiliating’ stay in a psychiatric ward.
‘Prioritising dignity’
. . . Hat has now created guidelines, which are being endorsed by several mental health and period charities and the Royal College of Occupational Therapists.
They include provision of appropriate products and information, prioritising a patient’s dignity – particularly when balancing safety – and also providing support for period pain.
Hat will also be presenting their findings at an event about period equality in parliament this week, organised by the charity Bloody Good Period.
While conducting their report, Hat said the consistency of patients’ experiences was ‘striking’ and the main findings were that patients were not supported while on their period.
The research also involved speaking to staff, some of whom acknowledged it wasn’t something they’d thought about before.”
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