I'd be interested to hear what mental health workers think of this story in the Telegraph. It appears a man with mental health problems died of hypothermia in his squalid home because workers did not want to move him against his will in case it breached his human rights.
I guess he could have been sectioned under the Mental Health Act but perhaps his mental health problems were not considered serious enough. But does living in such conditions constitute being a danger to oneself?
It seems a tricky case but the coroner involved was in no doubt, saying: "social services or the local mental health trust should have invoked their powers under the Mental Health Act to temporarily re-house the unwell man."
It seems a tricky case but the coroner involved was in no doubt, saying: "social services or the local mental health trust should have invoked their powers under the Mental Health Act to temporarily re-house the unwell man."
This is depressingly familiar reporting in that it doesn't provide anywhere near enough information to know whether there was a duty of care failure or not.
The coroner suggests powers under the MHA. It's fair enough to state that allowing yourself to die of hypothermia meets the 'at risk through self neglect' criteria for the MHA. But the Winterwerp judgement (Winterwerp vs the Netherlands) makes it clear that there also have to be three further conditions before we can deprive someone of their liberty in their best interests:
A disorder of mind
The disorder must be serious enough to warrant deprivation of liberty
The disorder must be currently 'active'.
That's why the MHA criteris for detention are...
Disorder of mind that results in:
Risk to self;
Risk to others;
At risk through self neglect
We don't know whether this man was floridly psychotic at the time or whether he was just making an unwise choice. He has the legal right to make unwise decisions so long as he understands them (principle 3 of the Mental Capacity Act 2005).
So if he wasn't acutely ill at the time and if he had capacity to decide then there would be no legal way to deprive him of his liberty. I don't know whether or not those conditions were met - the report doesn't say - but I do know this.....
The emotive language used by the reporter contains a hidden immplication - the implication that it is possible to prevent people making unwise choices that result in their death. We know that this is not true.
I'd be interested to read a balanced report of this case that doesn't contain such emotive and essentially biased language and that contains sufficient information to allow me to decide whether or not duty of care was actually neglected.
For example I'd appreciate reading a piece that doesn't equate respect for civil liberties with being 'frightened'. I'd also like to know whether the coroner (a physician) understands the civil liberties and the duty of care that underpin the ramifications here. After all medical training is not particularly effective at getting doctors to understand the law around civil livbertiers. That's why we have social workers, AMHPs and IMCAs to counteract medical paternalism.
It may be, of course, that the coroner was quite correct in his assessment but without further information I'm afraid I just don't know.
Cheers,
Stuart
Yet Again! we see another vulnerable individual let down by the services there to protect.
Responsability, accountability and a breakdown in communication are the forefront of any report. I am so frustrated, in many senses, firstly; as an informal carer of an individual with severe mental health issues, the barriers that i come accross on a daily basis beggars belief. (Maybe just as well im an activist) Recently I have had to care for someone whom has had auditory and visual halucinations with a veiw to killing themselves or others, with little hand to eye coordination and unsteady footing to be told there "isnt a bed available". Wheres the justice? what about my two young children.
Secondly I also work in a local phsychiatric hospital unit and the infantile discorse and oppressive nature that some staff portray is diabolical. sometimes I wonder. The staff go home to their lives and what of the patient? well theres your answer in the report.
Thirdly i am studying for a degree in social work and hope to make a difference to someones life. I understand that im not falable but i do hold "life precious" no matter what the circumstances.