Wythenshawe Hospital is in hot water after a 27-year old charity worker committed suicide in the ward. The staff and doctors of the hospital failed to assess her properly despite 27 previous suicide attempts. The incident happened in July 2012 while an inquest is still under process.
Apparently, Kim Lindfield committed suicide by hanging herself to the hospital bed after she was not given any mental health assessment despite suffering from depression for many years, reported Daily Mail. She felt like the doctors considered her as a 'waste of time' and 'attention seeker' but still warned them that she would kill herself.
The staff left her in the ward without anyone to look after her. Kim was admitted to the hospital after an apparent drug overdose. After a few hours since her admission, the nurses found her hanged in her bed while curtains were kept open for others to see.
She was still alive when they found her but died six days after when family members decided to let the doctors turn off her life support.
The coroner in an inquest said that the staff committed neglect, serious and significant failures. He added that if Kim was assessed properly and was referred to a mental health expert, she could have been saved.
Meanwhile, Kerry Bently, 52, Kim's mother said in a statement, "'We have listened to a lack of co-operation and communication, compounded by mismanagement, lack of compassionate care lack of record keeping and a frightening confusion among senior staff regarding the hospital's own policies and procedures."
"Unfortunately, despite pleading with her many times over the years, Kim did not involve us in her mental health care. Her intention was never to die but she mentioned to friends and counsellors how variable the care would be on visits to the hospital," she added.
Kim has been honored by Princess Anne for her dedication to charity work for St. John Ambulance. She was diagnosed of depression and bulimia for 12 years. However, before her death, she was complaining of her neighbors verbally abusing and intimidating her which caused her stress and depression.
This is not the first time Wythenshawe Hospital was placed in hot water after a patient committed suicide after failure of staff to assess for suicidal risk. In 2013, a 30-year old man, Eugene St. Leger, was admitted to Wythenshawe Hospital after an attempted suicide in his home.
Eugene slashed his throat with a broken glass in his home and was treated in Stepping Hill Hospital. He was transferred to Wythenshawe Hospital for emergency surgery. At first, he was needed to be restrained to be treated by paramedics. He calmed down after being transferred and was scheduled for a surgery the next morning.
He was not given proper psychiatric assessment because he was just briefly seen by a junior psychiatric doctor. He asked the staff to leave him in the room because he will urinate. They just heard a loud noise moments later, and saw Eugene fall to his death from the first floor.
