The shortcomings of a district health board have been exposed following its failure to see the signs of a young man's dilapidated mental health.
The district health board was forced to offer a wholehearted apology to the family of the deceased for believing the young man had a microchip planted in his ear.
The parents of the deceased sent several calls to the staff of the DHB, but all of their attempts to warn them of his medical condition fell on deaf ears.
Kevin Allan, the Mental health commissioner in a statement released following the news, found a psychiatrist and the district health board guilty for failing to provide adequate services to the victim. He instructed both parties to tender a full apology to the victims' parents.
The DHB mentioned it met with man's family to offer their unreserved sympathy, and tender a formal apology.
"We offer our sincerest sympathy to the family for their loss. We also apologize for the lapses in the care we provided when managing the situation," Nigel Millar, Southern DHB chief medical officer said.
The man in question was first admitted into the hospital after he said he could hear voices in his head. He requested that they check his ear for a microchip or transmitter.
After a month as a psychiatric inpatient, he was discharged and put in the care of a psychiatrist and psychiatric nurses. His treatment in that period included olanzapine (an antipsychotic medication).
Over a period spanning ten months, he was attended to by the mental health services, and during this period, his medication reduced. Although his symptoms showed definite signs of improvement, he continued to complain that he still heard voices in his head.
When on a family trip, he reported himself to a hospital citing strange symptoms such as hearing voices in his head. He believed that there was a microchip inserted in his ear. He was given olanzapine and advised to visit have.
On getting home, his psychiatrist noticed that he had stopped his medication, and was no longer hearing voices. But within the next three months, their evidence that this condition was getting worse.
However, in the coming days, the parents called the district's mental health services voicing their worry. They told the health services that he was unstable and required hospital treatment.
The man later denied he was psychotic when the psychiatric nurse put a call through to him. He even did not show up for several scheduled appointments. Sadly, the man later died.
From his investigation, Allan found out that the man's care plan was made with consent from him or his parents. Allan heavily criticised the DHB's for failing to notice that his condition was deteriorating.
Allan further noted that the caregivers should have seen that his condition was worsening. He further recommended that the patient's family should be involved in recovery plans among other things.
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