Tw To ask is there a point where it becomes neglect for mental health services to send people home

[OneSnugLemonTiger]

I’m talking in my area people can have serious attempts on their life and still be sent home not even with crisis team support. I know there is a culture of positive risk taking but is it always acceptable to send people home regardless of their risk. Would be interested to hear viewpoints especially from doctors who make that decision

It’s really worrying when people who have seriously struggled, even after suicide attempts, get sent home without proper support. Sure, there’s this idea of "positive risk taking" where they try to balance safety with independence, but it’s not okay to just send someone off without a proper plan or crisis team involved. Good practice means assessing risk carefully, involving the person and carers, and making sure follow-up care and support are set up before discharge. If that’s missing, it really can feel like neglect. Doctors have a tough job balancing it all, but sending someone home too soon without support isn’t acceptable.

Some of the most uncaring people I’ve ever met on this planet seem to work in mental health services. I understand they get jaded but still the lack of compassion basic human care has been despicable.

It doesn’t matter so much if the people are unkind and jaded, because there is a system with frameworks and policies to follow.

I’ve just had a family member released after section and the aftercare has really been incredible. I do wonder if it would’ve been as easy to obtain without the section.

Not everyone who wants to end their life has a mental illness.
sometimes people feel suicidal because of life events, and treatment for mental illness won’t help this.
if someone is struggling in this way, it may fall to social services to provide support and guidance.
it can be really difficult though, eg if an adult is using alcohol or substances and doesn’t want help to reduce. Unless they’re very unwell, they have capacity to make their own life choices.
@Bambamhoohoo yes if someone has been sectioned under section 3, services are legally obliged to provide aftercare.

Sadly for some people being in a hospital environment can actually increase risk of self harm and suicide, there have been many studies completed confirming this, patients are discussed in multidisciplinary meetings regularly and if staff assess a patient’s risk to be higher in an inpatient setting then yes they will probably plan a therapeutic discharge. There is also a limit to what hospital care can achieve, its stabilization only really getting people get in a better place to engage with care post discharge.
Sadly some people do get discharged too soon and this won’t be because staff are unkind or uncaring but because knowing exactly when its the right time can be extremely difficult to judge.
Having said that, everyone should absolutely go home with a proper support plan and for anyone who has been detained that is a statutory requirement.
So sorry for anyone touched by suicide, our family has lost two people to suicide ( neither under mental health services) so I do have personal insight and empathy.

I’m not sure what is to be expected?

If there’s no cure and there’s no money to keep people hospitalised what is to be done?

I very strongly agree with the point that keeping people in hospital isn’t ideal- it can be an extremely detrimental environment. I thought there was lots of evidence that people are more likely to get better at home.

and unfortunately, suicidal people generally just need to be watched 24/7. It doesn’t require a medical professional.

Theres just no money to fund the support. And the number of people needing the support continues to grow. Usually hospitalising people for mental health issues does nothing long term. It’s very worrying and very sad.

This is an interesting question and one of the many reasons I had to leave my job as a professional in a mental health team. I completely agree that hospital is not always the best place for people, not much of a therapeutic environment and for the client group I worked with was iatrogenic.

Howver, I lost count of the number of times I went cap in hand to the crisis team for someone I was really concerned about only to be told the person didn’t meet the threshold for support, or they hadn’t engaged previously so it was pointless. I am all for positive risk taking when this is planned and explained to the service user - but this wasn’t. No disrespect to crisis teams - their hands and resources are tied too!

In the end I couldn’t morally be complicit in a system that is so broken. There are not enough beds, not enough staff and not enough support for complex emotional needs and enduring mental health conditions.

I now work elsewhere and it is properly resourced and whilst not all champagne and roses - the differences are stark when you can do your job without one hand tied behind your back!

I am sorry OP if you have someone close to you that is in this system.

Yanbu its actually terrifying and definitely a postcode lottery. We had a young woman not long ago throw herself infront of a lorry and die as soon as she left a&e after begging for help

That’s so sad. Yes it’s an awful styerm with some very awful people working in it and course also some great people.