Just because people are unwell does not mean they are not dangerous. I wonder if the risk assessments are being made from the patients' perspective rather than that of the community or society - where with prisoners the latter are considered more.
from the BBC: "There were at least 116 escapes from medium and low secure psychiatric hospitals last year, a BBC investigation has found.Some of the units held patients who had committed serious and violent crimes.Last year, Darren Harkin, a convicted killer, escaped from Hayes Hospital, a secure private hospital near Bristol, and raped a 14-year-old girl. The former chief inspector of prisons, Sir David Ramsbotham, described the figures as horrifying...
...Two other cases which have raised security concerns at the Hayes, included an incident in which patient Tamer Mahmood was taken to St Werburghs City Farm - a place popular with families and schoolchildren.The farm said it was not informed he was on the sex offenders register and despite being accompanied by staff Mahmood absconded for 17 hours.The Hayes Hospital admitted they may have been wrong not to inform the farm of the patient's criminal history on this occasion. Even so they said they might in future withhold such information depending on individual circumstances.Earlier in March another patient from the Hayes, who was allowed a pint at a local pub every week under supervision, became aggressive.
Following these three incidents Carol Povey, head of adult services at the National Autistic Society, was asked whether security should be stepped up, but said this was not necessarily the best course of action. "The Hayes is not a prison. It is a hospital which specialises in working with people with autistic spectrum disorders. Our primary aim is therapeutic, to help people grow in their independence," he said. "People who live here are here because they've been assessed. "There has been an incident which was absolutely tragic, but we're working with complex people. We try to get the balance between therapy and security and it's extremely difficult to do that."
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lack of security in psychiatric hospitals
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Upwind · 09/09/2008 08:47
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