Derby man felt ‘fobbed off’ by mental health services before taking own life

A Derby man told his brother he felt “repeatedly cheated” by mental health services before taking his own life.

Adrian Carr, 45, from Shirland Court, Derby, was found unconscious in his flat in his bed after a visit from a social worker.

A poll He heard that Mr. Carr was able to access some support, including counseling and a social worker, but despite this, his brother said he felt he had fallen between the gaps in mental health services.

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He said his brother’s condition was deemed too serious to be treated by Talking Mental Health Derbyshire, an NHS talk therapy service, but not serious enough to be treated by secondary mental health services.

A report from the Derbyshire NHS Healthcare Foundation Trust that was read in court acknowledged that this was a problem.

But the report indicated no recommendations would be made as part of the trust’s investigation into the incident.

However, a new pilot project has been set up in Derbyshire to help fill the gaps in mental health services highlighted in this case, but not in direct relation to Mr Carr’s case.

The audience was told that Mr. Carr had experienced a difficult life that resulted in severe social anxiety and alcohol dependency.

Mr. Carr had courageously tackled his alcohol problem and gained significant control over his past addiction.

In 2018, he moved to Derby for a new job, which he lost shortly after the move and which took a drastic toll on his mental health. She took him to seek help from mental health services.

In an emotional statement, Mr. Carr’s brother described how his brother felt trapped in a position where no one cared about him.

The inquest heard how he was heavily involved in helping his brother, often traveling from his home in Wales to stay with Mr Carr.

He said: “Her behavior became more and more erratic, calling me for help saying she couldn’t cope.

“Adrian made numerous approaches to professional services, and they followed the protocol that I accept. But it left him with limited support and, in his words, he felt repeatedly misled.”

Peter Nieto, the Derby and Derbyshire Area Medical Examiner, acknowledged that Mr Carr had been assessed on a number of occasions, but his mental problems were deemed not to “meet the threshold” for accessing community mental health services.

Nieto said: “If that had been the end of it, there would be question marks, but I also understand that Carr was able to access talk therapy and counseling services, as well as a formal social care support worker.”

An autopsy found the cause of death to be multidrug toxicity from prescription medications in the context of mental health conditions.

Speaking about the possibility of Carr being overprescribed, Nieto said: “To me, it doesn’t seem like the frequency of prescriptions affected the amount of medication that he stockpiled in his apartment.

“Mr Carr’s brother has said that he often forgot basic tasks, and may not have been consistent in taking his medication, leading to a stockpile of medication.”

Nieto concluded that Carr’s death was by suicide.

Offering his condolences to Carr’s brother, Nieto said: “I’m sorry it took a while to get to your brother’s investigation. He was obviously quite involved in helping his brother and I offer my condolences on the sad passing of Adrian.”

A spokesperson for Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust said: “We would like to offer our deepest condolences to Mr Carr’s family.

“Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is committed to implementing the recommendations of the new national community mental health framework which, in part, aims to bridge the gap between Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) services ) (sometimes known as talk therapies) and specialist secondary services mental health services, and transform those secondary care services into a single integrated community mental health service.”

“The framework seeks to develop a more flexible system that proactively responds to people’s ongoing care needs. Health and care professionals in local communities will collaborate closely so that care is focused on an individual’s needs.” and may be scaled up or down based on levels of complexity – a person’s mental health diagnosis being just one of many possible factors that will be considered when assessing a person’s needs.”

“A range of partner organizations (including Derbyshire Healthcare) have set up a pilot scheme in the High Peak area of ​​Derbyshire and in the city of Derby to learn how to best apply the national framework in practice and design the new integrated service. The partner organizations in these areas are working together to provide people with practical support and advice to help them maintain their mental well-being, and the program will then roll out countywide over the next two years.”

“We would continue to encourage people in Derby and Derbyshire who are struggling with their mental health to talk about how they are feeling, with a friend, their GP, an IAPT talk therapy provider or a helpline such as the Helpline. 24/7 Derbyshire mental health help and support service, which can be contacted on 0800 028 0077.”

The inquest was held at Derby Coroner’s Court on February 2, 2022.

The Samaritans can be contacted at 116 123.

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