A major review has been launched to im-prove hospital services for adults with critical mental health problems.
Inpatient units at Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath and Horsham Hospital are in a poor condition and not up to modern standards.
The facilities break many of the rules on safety, privacy and dignity. They are unacceptably large - national guidelines say a mental health ward should have between 15 and 18 beds.
Rose Ward at Horsham has 29 beds while at Princess Royal there are 24 on Villa ward and six intensive care beds in Downsview.
There are no separate women-only areas, no ensuite facilities and limited single rooms. There is no dedicated outside space for either unit.
West Sussex Health and Social Care NHS Trust wants to provide more modern and accessible facilities for adults in the Haywards Heath, Burgess Hill, East Grinstead, Horsham and Crawley area.
A range of ideas are being considered, including building two new units or one larger unit to cover the whole area. The trust is hoping to come up with plans that will go out to formal consultation in June.
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