Self harm: Case study 1

This is the first of three case studies by Healthwatch Cornwall of a patient who had been having suicidal thoughts and felt that he had been “discarded in a corner” when he initially sought help in January 2015.

Mr X describes his tiresome ordeal from his GP one Friday afternoon, to then being sent to the A & E where in his words he felt that the emergency department “couldn’t do anything” so he was “discarded in the corner”. After waiting for 8 hours, he was found a bed at Bodmin Community Hospital through CMHT. After three days and attempting to break out of the hospital he was kept in line-of-sight for further five days. He finally made some friends on the ward, and gave up trying to escape after which it was recommended he go back to the original ward. Instead, he requested to be transferred to a ward at Camborne Redruth Community Hospital and his friend was also moved there. He started seeing a psychologist on the ward and was diagnosed as having bipolar disorder.

The patient found the diagnosis was helpful. He felt that staff on the ward when he first arrived at Bodmin Community Hospital should have been honest about ward rounds and let him know it would be a few days before he saw anyone. He also believes that he should have been dealt with at the GP surgery, not sent to the Emergency Department. If this is the only option though, he feels he should have been offered a side room as the busy emergency room made him feel anxious, which the staff seemed oblivious to.