Well it's been a few months since I last provided an update about my mum's case on here, primarily because it has taken months to have a decision about permission for the case to proceed at the High Court.
Unfortunately in early July Mr Justice Underhill refused permission on the papers, arguing that my family has taken too long to lodge papers. There was a substantial delay at the beginning of the year because the mental health trust had failed on numerous occasions to disclose important documentation about my mother's care, including health notes around the time of her death.
My family and I believe that Mr. Justice Underhill has unfairly rewarded the mental health trust for their delay in a judgement that was confusing and where he seemed to rule on the substantive merits of the case without probing the evidence. In light of this our solicitors immediately renewed the application for permission at an oral hearing, as is our right, where we will be arguing that the public interest is so significant that time limits should be set aside. The hearing date has been set for 23rd September.
Whilst vulnerable people continue to die in mental health institutions in this country, we believe it is not enough merely to brush aside concerns about the way in which the system operates. We will continue to fight for justice for my mother and, once again, thank all those who continue to provide support by way of letters and emails.
Take good care,
Steven Allen
Wednesday, 3 September 2008
Monday, 28 January 2008
Independent on Sunday article
The Independent on Sunday yesterday featured my mum's case in an effort to show the appalling legal loophole that has allowed the inquests of detained mental health patients not to be effectively scrutinised, again showing that "mental health patients have even less rights than criminals."
Here is the article in full.
Mental Health Campaign: Families demand full inquests for deaths in secure hospitals
By Nina Lakhani
Sunday, 27 January 2008
http://www.independent.co.uk/.../deaths-in-secure-hospitals-774652.html
Hundreds of people with mental health problems are dying while detained in hospital but their deaths are not being fully investigated.
Legal experts and campaigners claim coroners are failing to investigate thoroughly many of these deaths because of a legal loophole, with the result that suspected failures in care and even abuse are going undetected.
Coroners have complete freedom to determine the extent to which the death of a mental health patient will be investigated, unlike deaths in prison or police custody where they are legally compelled to investigate fully in the presence of a jury.
In many cases they are refusing to hold jury inquests – widely seen as a broader and more exacting form of inquiry.
Figures obtained by The Independent on Sunday show that 340 people died in psychiatric hospitals while under section last year – nearly one a day – although the Mental Health Care Commission believes some deaths in psychiatric care are not being reported.
As a result, grieving families are left to battle an "archaic system", often for years, just to find out how their relatives died.
Critics claim it is evidence of the discrimination suffered by mentally ill people and are demanding urgent changes to the law. "We are talking about the ultimate injustice; people go into hospital for a mental illness and are coming out dead. We need to send out a clear message that whatever happened to the individual behind closed doors is worthy of a thorough investigation," says Paul Farmer, chief executive ofthe mental health charity Mind
Coroners failing to investigate the deaths of psychiatric patients to the satisfaction of the families now face a High Court legal challenge.
Sandra Allen, a pianist and manic depressive, died of a heart attack in a north London psychiatric hospital in 2006.
A coroner ruled she died of natural causes which were unavoidable, but her children are challenging the coroner's verdict because they believe their mother's death could have been avoided with better care.
Mrs Allen, 61, died from a heart attack after choking on a sandwich she had been left to eat unattended: she had no dentures and a long history of choking. Staff failed to clear her airways and were unable to operate an oxygen canister. She was still choking when the ambulance arrived. It had waited for several minutes outside the unit because the security guard was asleep.
Her family argue the coroner was wrong to reject their request for a broader inquiry as much of the psychiatric and physical care she received while under section was unacceptable and they believe it contributed to her untimely death.
Devastated by the coroner's refusal to hear evidence from expert witnesses, they say they will fight "as long as it takes".
Solicitor Emma Norton, who acts for the family, said: "This case highlights the difficulties often faced by families in ensuring there are thorough inquiries into the deaths of patients in psychiatric institutions.
"Unlike prisoners, the families of dead patients are not automatically entitled to an inquest with a jury. It can be an uphill battle to get the coroner to consider the wider issues relevant to the death. There is a lot of inconsistency in these decisions and it depends on the coroner."
Critics argue patients who have been locked up and compelled to take treatment they did not want deserve an equal standard of justice when they die.
"This situation is indicative of how few rights mental health patients have. They have done nothing wrong; their only crime is to suffer from an illness, yet they have fewer rights than criminals," says Jane Harris, from the mental health charity Rethink.
"How many more people have to die without proper investigations? We are talking about hundreds of deaths."
Campaigners hoped the Government's proposed Coroners Bill might remedy some of the failings, but it was not mentioned in the Queen's Speech.
A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Justice said: "The Bill proposes that a coroner will investigate a death if they suspect the deceased died while detained, irrespective of the nature of the death or the type of detention."
But the co-director of Inquest, Helen Shaw, said: "We cannot take it for granted the Coroners Bill will happen just because the Government says it will. We need to crank up the heat and campaigning so detained patients are treated in the same way as any person detained by the state."
Andrew Lansley, shadow Secretary of State for Health, said: "There is a pressing need for this Bill. The Government promised one and they have had plenty of time to do so, but they have dithered and delayed."
'Whenever we visited her on the ward she would be covered in bruises'
Steven Allen, 23, a trainee lawyer, is the second of Sandra Allen's five children. Here he describes the family's determination to get justice for their mother.
"My mum died in hospital while held under section 3 of the Mental Health Act. She was 61 years old. Her life was a long battle with the mental health system and now she's dead we have to keep battling for her.
"She'd been in and out of hospitals since her 20s but as her physical health got worse we fought hard to get her looked after properly; we never won the fight. Whenever we visited her on the ward she would be covered in bruises and we would leave feeling terrified for her.
"We desperately wanted her moved to the elderly ward but were told she was too young and they wanted to 'keep muddling through'. I'm sure the staff on the elderly ward would have been better qualified to manage the heart attack.
"We believe she died needlessly. Why hadn't her heart disease been picked up? Why couldn't the staff work a simple oxygen canister? These are the questions we wanted the coroner to answer but he let us down badly; he dismissed my mum's life as unimportant.
"We know this could take years but we want her struggles acknowledged and justice, not just for her, but for every other family in this situation."
Here is the article in full.
Mental Health Campaign: Families demand full inquests for deaths in secure hospitals
By Nina Lakhani
Sunday, 27 January 2008
http://www.independent.co.uk/.../deaths-in-secure-hospitals-774652.html
Hundreds of people with mental health problems are dying while detained in hospital but their deaths are not being fully investigated.
Legal experts and campaigners claim coroners are failing to investigate thoroughly many of these deaths because of a legal loophole, with the result that suspected failures in care and even abuse are going undetected.
Coroners have complete freedom to determine the extent to which the death of a mental health patient will be investigated, unlike deaths in prison or police custody where they are legally compelled to investigate fully in the presence of a jury.
In many cases they are refusing to hold jury inquests – widely seen as a broader and more exacting form of inquiry.
Figures obtained by The Independent on Sunday show that 340 people died in psychiatric hospitals while under section last year – nearly one a day – although the Mental Health Care Commission believes some deaths in psychiatric care are not being reported.
As a result, grieving families are left to battle an "archaic system", often for years, just to find out how their relatives died.
Critics claim it is evidence of the discrimination suffered by mentally ill people and are demanding urgent changes to the law. "We are talking about the ultimate injustice; people go into hospital for a mental illness and are coming out dead. We need to send out a clear message that whatever happened to the individual behind closed doors is worthy of a thorough investigation," says Paul Farmer, chief executive ofthe mental health charity Mind
Coroners failing to investigate the deaths of psychiatric patients to the satisfaction of the families now face a High Court legal challenge.
Sandra Allen, a pianist and manic depressive, died of a heart attack in a north London psychiatric hospital in 2006.
A coroner ruled she died of natural causes which were unavoidable, but her children are challenging the coroner's verdict because they believe their mother's death could have been avoided with better care.
Mrs Allen, 61, died from a heart attack after choking on a sandwich she had been left to eat unattended: she had no dentures and a long history of choking. Staff failed to clear her airways and were unable to operate an oxygen canister. She was still choking when the ambulance arrived. It had waited for several minutes outside the unit because the security guard was asleep.
Her family argue the coroner was wrong to reject their request for a broader inquiry as much of the psychiatric and physical care she received while under section was unacceptable and they believe it contributed to her untimely death.
Devastated by the coroner's refusal to hear evidence from expert witnesses, they say they will fight "as long as it takes".
Solicitor Emma Norton, who acts for the family, said: "This case highlights the difficulties often faced by families in ensuring there are thorough inquiries into the deaths of patients in psychiatric institutions.
"Unlike prisoners, the families of dead patients are not automatically entitled to an inquest with a jury. It can be an uphill battle to get the coroner to consider the wider issues relevant to the death. There is a lot of inconsistency in these decisions and it depends on the coroner."
Critics argue patients who have been locked up and compelled to take treatment they did not want deserve an equal standard of justice when they die.
"This situation is indicative of how few rights mental health patients have. They have done nothing wrong; their only crime is to suffer from an illness, yet they have fewer rights than criminals," says Jane Harris, from the mental health charity Rethink.
"How many more people have to die without proper investigations? We are talking about hundreds of deaths."
Campaigners hoped the Government's proposed Coroners Bill might remedy some of the failings, but it was not mentioned in the Queen's Speech.
A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Justice said: "The Bill proposes that a coroner will investigate a death if they suspect the deceased died while detained, irrespective of the nature of the death or the type of detention."
But the co-director of Inquest, Helen Shaw, said: "We cannot take it for granted the Coroners Bill will happen just because the Government says it will. We need to crank up the heat and campaigning so detained patients are treated in the same way as any person detained by the state."
Andrew Lansley, shadow Secretary of State for Health, said: "There is a pressing need for this Bill. The Government promised one and they have had plenty of time to do so, but they have dithered and delayed."
'Whenever we visited her on the ward she would be covered in bruises'
Steven Allen, 23, a trainee lawyer, is the second of Sandra Allen's five children. Here he describes the family's determination to get justice for their mother.
"My mum died in hospital while held under section 3 of the Mental Health Act. She was 61 years old. Her life was a long battle with the mental health system and now she's dead we have to keep battling for her.
"She'd been in and out of hospitals since her 20s but as her physical health got worse we fought hard to get her looked after properly; we never won the fight. Whenever we visited her on the ward she would be covered in bruises and we would leave feeling terrified for her.
"We desperately wanted her moved to the elderly ward but were told she was too young and they wanted to 'keep muddling through'. I'm sure the staff on the elderly ward would have been better qualified to manage the heart attack.
"We believe she died needlessly. Why hadn't her heart disease been picked up? Why couldn't the staff work a simple oxygen canister? These are the questions we wanted the coroner to answer but he let us down badly; he dismissed my mum's life as unimportant.
"We know this could take years but we want her struggles acknowledged and justice, not just for her, but for every other family in this situation."
Monday, 21 January 2008
Happy New Year, and the Campaign Broadens
Dear All,
Although it's now already over three weeks into the new year, please accept my greetings to you all for a prosperous time in the rest of 2008.
Things are starting to happen in respect of the campaign about proper investigations into the deaths of those detained under the Mental Health Act. Firstly, I'm drawing up a campaign statement to ask that the law is changed to ensure inquests by juries in such cases, which will then be open to the signature of NGOs, individuals and public figures. This I hope to be able to share with you all next week, with more detailed plans about the campaign.
In addition, the Independent on Sunday will be running an article this weekend featuring my mum's case and analysing the broader legal situation which I've written about on this site at some length. Hopefully this will provide a springboard for a broader public debate on the adequacy of these death investigations and we will be able to redouble our pressure for change to occur within the coronial system. Please get a copy if you can.
I also just wanted to remind everyone that the petition calling for a change in the law - at http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Coroners/ - is due to close for signatures at the end of this month. All we're asking for is that the deaths of detained patients are treated as seriously as those that occur in prisons and police stations - the logic is almost painful in its moral clarity. We really need more signatures to get a good response from the government so please consider clicking the link above if you have not already done so.
In a deeply disturbing case where Geoffrey Hodgkin died in 2004 whilst under Section after being restrained, a public inquiry report at the end of last year uncovered similar institutional calamities as occurred around my mum's death. Failures included the inability of staff to use resuscitation equipment, extremely poor management, training and oversight of staff, and the complete unwillingness of the mental health trust to engage with subsequent investigations. Geoffrey's death, like my mother's, highlight again the inadequacy of the the government's protection of our most vulnerable citizens, which my family and I believe cannot be allowed to continue. More details about Geoffrey Hodgkin's case can be found in the inquiry report at http://www.portsmouth.gov.uk/media/hosp20061101r7.pdf.
We hope that, like Geoffrey's family, by standing up to the overwhelming disinterest in matters of life and death in our mental health institutions, we can push for severely overdue reforms to a system that regularly breaches the most fundamental of human rights. It is truly saddening that, in 2008, we are still having to make such basic demands for human dignity, and even more saddening that most people are completely unaware of the situation. We will continue shouting until our point is acted upon.
With best wishes to you all,
Steven Allen
Although it's now already over three weeks into the new year, please accept my greetings to you all for a prosperous time in the rest of 2008.
Things are starting to happen in respect of the campaign about proper investigations into the deaths of those detained under the Mental Health Act. Firstly, I'm drawing up a campaign statement to ask that the law is changed to ensure inquests by juries in such cases, which will then be open to the signature of NGOs, individuals and public figures. This I hope to be able to share with you all next week, with more detailed plans about the campaign.
In addition, the Independent on Sunday will be running an article this weekend featuring my mum's case and analysing the broader legal situation which I've written about on this site at some length. Hopefully this will provide a springboard for a broader public debate on the adequacy of these death investigations and we will be able to redouble our pressure for change to occur within the coronial system. Please get a copy if you can.
I also just wanted to remind everyone that the petition calling for a change in the law - at http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Coroners/ - is due to close for signatures at the end of this month. All we're asking for is that the deaths of detained patients are treated as seriously as those that occur in prisons and police stations - the logic is almost painful in its moral clarity. We really need more signatures to get a good response from the government so please consider clicking the link above if you have not already done so.
In a deeply disturbing case where Geoffrey Hodgkin died in 2004 whilst under Section after being restrained, a public inquiry report at the end of last year uncovered similar institutional calamities as occurred around my mum's death. Failures included the inability of staff to use resuscitation equipment, extremely poor management, training and oversight of staff, and the complete unwillingness of the mental health trust to engage with subsequent investigations. Geoffrey's death, like my mother's, highlight again the inadequacy of the the government's protection of our most vulnerable citizens, which my family and I believe cannot be allowed to continue. More details about Geoffrey Hodgkin's case can be found in the inquiry report at http://www.portsmouth.gov.uk/media/hosp20061101r7.pdf.
We hope that, like Geoffrey's family, by standing up to the overwhelming disinterest in matters of life and death in our mental health institutions, we can push for severely overdue reforms to a system that regularly breaches the most fundamental of human rights. It is truly saddening that, in 2008, we are still having to make such basic demands for human dignity, and even more saddening that most people are completely unaware of the situation. We will continue shouting until our point is acted upon.
With best wishes to you all,
Steven Allen
Thursday, 20 December 2007
Christmas Wishes and Shocking Truths
Dear All,
Sorry for the lack of updates recently - this has been because there has been little to report as my family and I are just waiting for the courts to kick into gear in the judicial review into my mum's inquest. As I think we all know, a fight for justice such as my mum's case can take a very long time and be very drawn out, but this will not deter us from continuing.
Whilst we watch the inquest into the deaths of Diana, Princess of Wales, and Dodi Al-Fayed, continuing on the television day in and day out, we hope that we will one day be able to secure such a detailed investigation into our mum's death. The inquest into their deaths are important, but we hope that my mum's death is seen as just as important, as well as the potential impact on the Victorian system which caused her death.
We are pleased that Mind are still supporting us and believe that, without juries, inquests into deaths of people detained under the Mental Health Act are discriminatory. See their campaigning newsletter at http://www.mind.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/FF355335-5079-48A1-A5D3-A27D8119F1E0/5956/MiA25.pdf.
On another less-than-happy point, an answer to a Parliamentary Question on 17th December showed that between a quarter and a fifth of all deaths of people in mental health institutions detained against their will are classed as 'unnatural'. This is a shocking 231 deaths between 2004 and 2006 alone, and shows the depths of the crisis in our mental health care in Britain. Details of the PQ can be found here.
It is with this in mind that, over the Christmas period, my family will be recuperating and redoubling our efforts to have my mum's case heard fairly, and to push for better safeguards for all. We now know that the government does not even collect figures on the number of inquests which are heard before a full jury, showing the sad disregard we seem to have for the most vulnerable people in our society.
Looking towards the festive period, my family and I wish you all a peaceful and restful period. We ask that you think about friends, family and others who will not be at home this Christmas, and will be forced to stay in mental health institutions, hidden and without the care and attention they have a right to receive.
If you have not done so, I urge you to sign the petition to call for greater transparency in inquests: just visit http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Coroners/. It shouldn't take more than two minutes and we need at least 200 signatures before the end of January to get a response from the Government. Please also get everyone you know to sign too - a small effort will support our call for action greatly.
With kind wishes to you all,
Steven Allen
Sorry for the lack of updates recently - this has been because there has been little to report as my family and I are just waiting for the courts to kick into gear in the judicial review into my mum's inquest. As I think we all know, a fight for justice such as my mum's case can take a very long time and be very drawn out, but this will not deter us from continuing.
Whilst we watch the inquest into the deaths of Diana, Princess of Wales, and Dodi Al-Fayed, continuing on the television day in and day out, we hope that we will one day be able to secure such a detailed investigation into our mum's death. The inquest into their deaths are important, but we hope that my mum's death is seen as just as important, as well as the potential impact on the Victorian system which caused her death.
We are pleased that Mind are still supporting us and believe that, without juries, inquests into deaths of people detained under the Mental Health Act are discriminatory. See their campaigning newsletter at http://www.mind.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/FF355335-5079-48A1-A5D3-A27D8119F1E0/5956/MiA25.pdf.
On another less-than-happy point, an answer to a Parliamentary Question on 17th December showed that between a quarter and a fifth of all deaths of people in mental health institutions detained against their will are classed as 'unnatural'. This is a shocking 231 deaths between 2004 and 2006 alone, and shows the depths of the crisis in our mental health care in Britain. Details of the PQ can be found here.
It is with this in mind that, over the Christmas period, my family will be recuperating and redoubling our efforts to have my mum's case heard fairly, and to push for better safeguards for all. We now know that the government does not even collect figures on the number of inquests which are heard before a full jury, showing the sad disregard we seem to have for the most vulnerable people in our society.
Looking towards the festive period, my family and I wish you all a peaceful and restful period. We ask that you think about friends, family and others who will not be at home this Christmas, and will be forced to stay in mental health institutions, hidden and without the care and attention they have a right to receive.
If you have not done so, I urge you to sign the petition to call for greater transparency in inquests: just visit http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Coroners/. It shouldn't take more than two minutes and we need at least 200 signatures before the end of January to get a response from the Government. Please also get everyone you know to sign too - a small effort will support our call for action greatly.
With kind wishes to you all,
Steven Allen
Tuesday, 30 October 2007
Petition To Prime Minister Opened.
On 23rd October, Mr. Ivan Lewis, Under Secretary of State for Health, released figures showing that the numbers of deaths in mental health institutions during 2005-6 were 1,980. This is higher than previously thought and goes further in establishing the true scale of the crisis in our mental health institutions up and down the country.
Mr. Lewis provided the information in answer to a Parliamentary Question tabled by member of parliament for Islington North Jeremy Corbyn which can be viewed here. Although figures have been dropping in the last few years (from a high of 2,970 in the year 2001/2) the high number suggests that far too many are still entering our mental health institutions and are never leaving.
The information provides further support for my family's proposition that all cases where people die in mental health institutions should be properly investigated by coroners. We say that this can only happen if inquests into deaths of people in mental health institutions happen before a jury, in exactly the same way as is automatic for prisoners who die in prison.
We are therefore today launching a petition (click here to sign) to ask that the law be changed to make this happen. The Coroner's Bill is currently being drafted and is expected to be announced in the Queen's Speech next week. Please sign the petition and get your friends and family to as well. Every signature will support the cause that these deaths simply cannot go unnoticed and a proper investigation is vital.
I will write again when we know the dates for our High Court hearing, which we are just waiting for now. In the meantime, thanks for the ongoing messages of support.
Steven
Mr. Lewis provided the information in answer to a Parliamentary Question tabled by member of parliament for Islington North Jeremy Corbyn which can be viewed here. Although figures have been dropping in the last few years (from a high of 2,970 in the year 2001/2) the high number suggests that far too many are still entering our mental health institutions and are never leaving.
The information provides further support for my family's proposition that all cases where people die in mental health institutions should be properly investigated by coroners. We say that this can only happen if inquests into deaths of people in mental health institutions happen before a jury, in exactly the same way as is automatic for prisoners who die in prison.
We are therefore today launching a petition (click here to sign) to ask that the law be changed to make this happen. The Coroner's Bill is currently being drafted and is expected to be announced in the Queen's Speech next week. Please sign the petition and get your friends and family to as well. Every signature will support the cause that these deaths simply cannot go unnoticed and a proper investigation is vital.
I will write again when we know the dates for our High Court hearing, which we are just waiting for now. In the meantime, thanks for the ongoing messages of support.
Steven
Monday, 1 October 2007
A Sad First Anniversary
Dear All,
The first anniversary of my mum's death will come about tonight (1st/2nd October) at just after midnight; a year which has been marked with grief and a fight for justice for my family and which is still a long way from being finished.
Sadly in the year since my mother's death there have been the deaths of numerous others in our mental hospitals up and down the country and, indeed around the world. 'Deaths in custody' as they are euphemistically termed reached 600 in the year to April 2007: these included deaths in prisons, police cells and mental hospitals, the latter by far accounting for the vast majority of these deaths. Please have a look at the Forum for Preventing Deaths in Custody's website for more information.
Whilst suicide and 'death by natural causes' are the most frequent pronouncements by those who investigate the matters, the experience of my mother's death and the ensuing investigation has shown the depressing lack of quality of these investigations in the first place. An investigation which is focused merely on the extremely limited medical evidence without any anxious questioning of the imprisoning environment is, surely, a failure of justice but, more importantly, a failure of morality.
A judiciary which is unwilling to hold the elements of our state to account - especially where the death of an individual in their 'care' or 'custody' - is, to borrow a phrase, unfit for purpose.
It is with this saddening reality that my family continue to take a campaigning approach after my mother died in the first few minutes of 2nd October 2006, choking on her vomit, surrounded by the cacophony of state-negligence: a sleeping security guard, the lack of proper medical training of nurses, the lack of proper care, dignity or humanity.
As we have repeatedly said before, my mother's death raises broader questions about mental health in our society. Why, the question can be asked, is it that we are so quick to incarcerate people with so-called 'mental illness' - both for their own protection and that of society - and then submit them to poor, callous treatment in an area of the NHS which hasn't seen the boom of its medical brothers and sisters? Why do we still see so many people with mental illness not just in our mental hospitals but also in our prisons and trudging their way through our criminal justice system? Why can't we value the lives of our fellow human beings?
'Mental illness' is still a Cinderella aspect of our society, shunned and hidden, feared and loathed, misunderstood and oppressed. This dehumanisation - culminating in the death of the 'mentally ill patient' in the state's arms - is a truly wretched state of affairs. The question then is why do so few people seem to care? And why can't so many people see that it could be them that suffers a similar fate to my mother?
But as our solicitors prepare to lodge papers - the wheels of justice turn extremely slowly - at the High Court in our challenge of the discreditable conduct of Dr. Andrew Reid, we are remembering the reason for our struggle once more. The laughter, humanity and decency of our mother made her an important human being - not a person with mental illness. It is in her memory - and with those in mind who have, are and will suffer the tragedies of our present system - that we will continue this fight for justice, even though the odds are definitely against us.
Thank you all for your kind thoughts and words over the last year.
The first anniversary of my mum's death will come about tonight (1st/2nd October) at just after midnight; a year which has been marked with grief and a fight for justice for my family and which is still a long way from being finished.
Sadly in the year since my mother's death there have been the deaths of numerous others in our mental hospitals up and down the country and, indeed around the world. 'Deaths in custody' as they are euphemistically termed reached 600 in the year to April 2007: these included deaths in prisons, police cells and mental hospitals, the latter by far accounting for the vast majority of these deaths. Please have a look at the Forum for Preventing Deaths in Custody's website for more information.
Whilst suicide and 'death by natural causes' are the most frequent pronouncements by those who investigate the matters, the experience of my mother's death and the ensuing investigation has shown the depressing lack of quality of these investigations in the first place. An investigation which is focused merely on the extremely limited medical evidence without any anxious questioning of the imprisoning environment is, surely, a failure of justice but, more importantly, a failure of morality.
A judiciary which is unwilling to hold the elements of our state to account - especially where the death of an individual in their 'care' or 'custody' - is, to borrow a phrase, unfit for purpose.
It is with this saddening reality that my family continue to take a campaigning approach after my mother died in the first few minutes of 2nd October 2006, choking on her vomit, surrounded by the cacophony of state-negligence: a sleeping security guard, the lack of proper medical training of nurses, the lack of proper care, dignity or humanity.
As we have repeatedly said before, my mother's death raises broader questions about mental health in our society. Why, the question can be asked, is it that we are so quick to incarcerate people with so-called 'mental illness' - both for their own protection and that of society - and then submit them to poor, callous treatment in an area of the NHS which hasn't seen the boom of its medical brothers and sisters? Why do we still see so many people with mental illness not just in our mental hospitals but also in our prisons and trudging their way through our criminal justice system? Why can't we value the lives of our fellow human beings?
'Mental illness' is still a Cinderella aspect of our society, shunned and hidden, feared and loathed, misunderstood and oppressed. This dehumanisation - culminating in the death of the 'mentally ill patient' in the state's arms - is a truly wretched state of affairs. The question then is why do so few people seem to care? And why can't so many people see that it could be them that suffers a similar fate to my mother?
But as our solicitors prepare to lodge papers - the wheels of justice turn extremely slowly - at the High Court in our challenge of the discreditable conduct of Dr. Andrew Reid, we are remembering the reason for our struggle once more. The laughter, humanity and decency of our mother made her an important human being - not a person with mental illness. It is in her memory - and with those in mind who have, are and will suffer the tragedies of our present system - that we will continue this fight for justice, even though the odds are definitely against us.
Thank you all for your kind thoughts and words over the last year.
Tuesday, 4 September 2007
Deaths of Mental Health Patients a Hidden Scandal
As my mum's case continues to move slowly, I've decided to do some research into deaths of patients who suffer mental illness. The amount of research in this area is not very substantial - unsurprising given people with mental illness are so low down on the list of public priorities - but some of the clearest information is available in the National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Homicide by People with Mental Illness. Whilst the report also covers so-called 'sudden deaths' its interesting to find that this is not noted on the report's title page.
Shocking statistics uncovered by the government-sponsored research include:
- There are 41 'unexplained deaths' per year on average in British mental hospitals, many of which are put down to pre-existing conditions such as cardiopulmonary disease. Treatment for elderly and vulnerable patients in these situations is marked out as being inadequate and requiring action for improvement. Of these deaths 85% had occurred on in-patient wards and 28% occurred when the patient had been detained under the powers of the Mental Health Act.
- 1,300 people with mental illnesses commit suicide on average every year having had contact with mental health services within three months prior to their deaths. 233 suicides per year were identified as preventable.
The sheer scale of these deaths is shocking it itself, yet the recommendations of the report seem to fall well short of sugegsting any form of public inquiry, especially into deaths which are known to have been preventable. Yet families and friends of deceased mental health patients do not have the protections of broad investigations in the way that families of those who have died in prison.
One preventable death a year is bad enough - these figures seem to suggest a national scandal
And, to add insult to injury, deaths of mental health patients are not treated any differently to anyone elses, despite the fact that mental health service often have a significant impact on these people. Surely there is something very wrong in a country which does not properly investigate the deaths of some of the most vulnerable members of our society. My family and I will continue to fight on in the face of this scandal in our country's mental health institutions and fight for change.
Thank you for your continued support.
Kind wishes,
Steven Allen
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