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Arrowe Park Hospital, Birkenhead(Image: Danny Lawson\/PA Wire)<\/p>\nA coroner has raised concerns with the NHS following the death of Charles StonleyArrowe Park Hospital, Birkenhead(Image: Danny Lawson\/PA Wire)<\/p>\n
A man with a history of severe depression was found dead in woodland after waiting for hours in an A&E cubicle for a bed to become available.<\/p>\n
Charles Stonley, 50, died on shortly after 8am on March 13 this year after attending Arrowe Park Hospital<\/a> the night before with “suicidal intentions”. But there were no mental health spaces available in the Wirral<\/a> hospital’s emergency department so Mr Stonley was put in a cubicle near to the nursing bay, which a prevention of future deaths report said exposed him to more noise and distress “than if he had been in a quiet room specifically for patients suffering a crisis”.<\/p>\n The report made by Liverpool and Wirral area coroner<\/a> Anita Bhardwaj raised concerns about the resources available to mental health patients attending emergency departments.<\/p>\n Ms Bhardwaj said: “It is more likely than not that if a mental health bed had been available within a reasonable time, namely a few hours, the outcome for Charles would have been different and prevented him from leaving the emergency department and carrying out the act of self harm he subsequently did.”<\/p>\n The ECHO has approached NHS England<\/a> for a comment in response to the report.<\/p>\n Outlining the facts of the case, Ms Bhardwaj said Mr Stonley attended the hospital on March 12 shortly before 9pm and was “tearful, psychotic and paranoid”. The coroner said if Mr Stonley planned to leave the hospital an assessment would be carried out and a missing person alert process logged.<\/p>\n Mr Stonley was assessed and an informal admission to a mental health unit was agreed. He awaited a bed to be made available and remained in the emergency department in the cubicle. In the early hours of the following morning he was suffering with increased agitation and “displaying psychotic symptoms”.<\/p>\n He left the hospital on two occasions but was quickly returned. By 7am he was calm and had medication administered, but left the hospital an hour later stating he was going to take his own life. Merseyside Police was called by the hospital staff who reported Mr Stonley had been followed into the woods.<\/p>\n Mental health support<\/p>\n Helplines and support groups<\/strong><\/p>\n The NHS Choices website<\/a> lists the following helplines and support networks for people to talk to.<\/p>\n Elsewhere, the Jade L Roberts Project<\/a> supports women and men in suicidal crisis in Merseyside. They also offer support for people suffering from mental health issues. You can contact them on 0151 245 5671.<\/p>\n\n