Sophie McGuire, 23, who suffers from a complex condition that affects her eyes and causes problems with her organs, was being treated at Forth Valley Royal Hospital when she was allegedly restrained.
A young woman battling a complex medical condition was left battered and bruised after being “wrongly restrained” in a mental health unit, her mother claims.
Sophie McGuire, 23, who suffers from a complex disease affecting her eyes and internal organs, was being treated in hospital. National Health Service Scotland Royal Forth Valley Hospital. Her mother, Lynn, says her daughter had tried to assault a nurse and was restrained face down, with her chest pressed down, which was inappropriate for her condition.
Lynn estimates that over the course of her various stints in hospital, Sophie was allegedly restrained in this manner around 100 times. The 52-year-old says she first saw bruises on her daughter’s body in August 2019, after Sophie was detained in Ward 1 of the hospital.
Lynn said: “For six days I rang to see Sophie but was told she was too ill. On the sixth day I finally walked in and was covered in bruises from head to toe. I wrote straight away to complain. A couple of days later an official Mental health came to my house and said she was happy and that no further investigation was necessary because Sophie had tried to strangle a nurse, which she had done because she was very unwell. She was pinned face down for four hours straight: six adults. immobilized face down and with their arms behind their backs.
Lynn claimed her daughter was forced to spend three years locked up in a mental health ward because doctors didn’t treat her for what she believes was a simple vitamin deficiency. Sophie, from Stirling, was locked up between the ages of 19 and 22 and for more than a year she was not allowed any contact with her family. She said last night: “It was torture.”
Sophie, who was hospitalized in 2019 after years of mental health problems, suffers from Bardet-Biedl syndrome, a complex disorder that severely affects vision and can lead to kidney disease and other organic problems. Lynn says her condition means she should never have been restrained face down. Her mother also alleges that her daughter was bullied while she was in the hospital.
Alleging repeated use of restraints by different types of staff, including cleaning staff, he said: “Sophie was crying and screaming for them to press the alarm and then six adults would appear and restrain my daughter on the floor – some of them They were security guards.” or the cleaners did that almost every day. Some days she caused minor injuries to staff, so the police were called and she ended up with 29 criminal charges, but she was never tried for any of them. to society so they could lock her up for the rest of her life.”
The hospital eventually banned visitors and electronic devices, so none of her friends and family saw her for over a year, and it wasn’t until she was moved to supported accommodation on campus in August 2022 that she picked herself up. prohibition.
Desperate to find a reason for her daughter’s behavior, Lynn examined Sophie’s medical records and discovered that as of 2017 she had a vitamin B12 and folate deficiency. Lynn said that after Sophie was treated with vitamin B12, she was able to return home for short visits and was discharged in March 2023. She has not had psychotic episodes in more than a year.
Forth Valley Health Board said there was no clinical evidence to support the use of B12 injections as a treatment for psychosis. A spokesperson for NHS Forth Valley told local media: “Our experienced staff follow national guidance and best practice to manage a wide range of difficult and sometimes violent situations as quickly and safely as possible. De-escalation skills are used. tensions and other approaches to avoid the need for physical restraint, which would only be used as a last resort when a patient is at serious risk of harming themselves or others.
“Any approach used to handle difficult and distressing situations is designed to avoid the possibility of injury and is used for the shortest time possible. However, any incident that results in injury to patients or staff will be reported and reviewed. People only They are detained under the Mental Health Act if there are serious concerns about their mental health, and any compulsory treatment order must be approved and regularly reviewed by an independent Mental Health Tribunal.
“Patients and their families can also access independent advocacy and advice services if they have any concerns about their care or treatment. Visits or contact with family and friends would only be restricted in very exceptional circumstances, for example where there are protection or serious concerns about the impact of visits on a patient’s well-being, health and well-being. “These arrangements would only be implemented when all other options for maintaining contact have been exhausted.”
The alleged incidents took place in the same psychiatric intensive care ward where a man died amid accusations that he was over-sedated. A complainant told the Daily entry Recently, Jake Llewellyn, 26, was restrained and sedated after being involved in a violent incident at Larbert hospital, Stirlingshire, dying a few days later.
