MENTAL health services in the area could soon be run by a single NHS trust after bosses admitted "fragmented" working is affecting patients.

The proposal has been drawn up following a review of provision by Solent and Southern NHS trusts - and others - across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.

Dr Derek Sandeman, chief medical officer at the area's Integrated Care System, said mental health care is under "considerable stress" and the complex way it is structured had 'inevitably resulted in gaps'.

He told Southampton councillors the pressure on NHS services is "impacting on patients' care".

He said: "The NHS is struggling everywhere.

"To pick up any one service and say this is an area of particular concern is difficult at the moment, given the stress wherever one might look, but actually mental health really has been struggling.

"Mental health was struggling with capacity prior to Covid.

"But if you look at demand, over time, it has grown much more than any other service and demand capacity is really constrained."

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He added: "The reason for commissioning the independent... into these services was a realisation that we were watching a service under considerable stress and that was impacting on patients' care and we needed to look at that and consider was there a case for change."

Dr Sandeman said the plan was not about cutting funding.

The review found demand on mental health services could increase by 10 per cent within three years - all while there are major shortages in staffing.

Speaking at Southampton's Health Overview and Scrutiny Panel last week Ron Shields, Chief Executive at Southern Health, said: "There isn't a magic wand that all of the problems we face, the money, the rest of it will be sorted - but the working together will make things better from the public resource we have and the working in communities.

Cllr Lorna Fielker raised concerns the plans were not widely consulted on with councils.

She said: "I remain concerned - I don't see in here (the report) how our needs for our population are represented, how we're able to influence that and have those discussions."

The new NHS trust - taking in all of Southern and Solent's mental health services and some of their community services - is due to be created by April 2024 but a business case has not yet been signed off.

Some beds run by the two trusts could be given to acute hospitals.

The plans are set to be considered by the county's Integrated Care Board next month.