Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Higher education

Talk to other parents whose children are preparing for university on our Higher Education forum.

Flip

1 2 3 4

Original poster

Someone is trying to ruin my life and it is working

84 replies

thisisthend · 20/12/2017 22:40

Someone made a phone to my university reporting me telling them I had been sectioned in the past. Now the university are threatening to throw me off the course. The questions at admission asked if I had a mental health condition or had been a service user of a local authority, and I answered 'no' because I do not have a diagnosed condition and did not think that question applied to me. Now the uni is treating me like a liar. I feel discriminated against. I keep telling them this but they won't accept what I am saying. This person has done this maliciously to ruin my life. I've been got the police involved saying it is malicious but the uni aren't interested. What can I do?

OP posts:

user1471450935 · 21/12/2017 00:29

Sorry not much help, but saw your post earlier at work. Hoped someone who worked in a university would have answered you. I didn't want to read and run. I am only a dad of Ds of 17 so not much use. But could ask the investigating officer to talk to the uni on your behalf.
Ask your GP or the one you are registered with at uni to talk to/ with your permission release your medical files to the uni. Get/ask the National Union of Student's to help you. On the open days we have attend all uni's where desperate to point out their student wefsre depts to both propestive students and us parents, could you ask your uni's welfare dept for help.
Finally talk to Citizen Adavice Bureau, they are free and usually in phonebook/ google search and should give you advice/point you in right direction. Or possibly ask a charity like mind for help/advice, once again should be a local branch in phonebook/google search.
Sorry if not much help but do try above, thats what i would advise my children if in same position as you. Don't give in and fight your corner, mental health isn't a reason to lose your place at university. Good luck in your fight and your future life. Hope this helps a little. I would be horrified it it happened to any one we know.

Kez100 · 21/12/2017 06:04

Is your mental health particularly relevant to your course? (I'm thinking perhaps medicine, but I'm no expert?)

Isnt it more likely that the question is there so they can support students rather than not accept them?

TheSameCoin · 21/12/2017 06:18

What course are you doing that the university is so concerned with your mental health? I’m struggling to think of many careers let alone course of study where mental health issues would automatically bar you from entry.

CrossFreelancer · 21/12/2017 06:19

What a busy body. What course are you on? I think you are right though, if you have no diagnosed MH conditions then, you didn't need to declare anything.

hiyasminitsme · 21/12/2017 06:27

I had a mental health condition or had been a service user of a local authority,

well, in retrospect obviously you should have said yes. You have been a service user of a mental health team and you don't get sectioned without having a mental health condition, diagnosed or not. The problem is they can now get you for lying on the form, whether intentional or not.

I would send an email to the relevant people profusely apologising for your misunderstanding, giving them the information they ask for and asking for a meeting in January to discuss it. I assume your course is somehow vocational, maybe healthcare for them to be interested? If there is no current risk then it should be fine.

Bananamanfan · 21/12/2017 06:29

Sorry to hear this, op. I agree with you; you do not have a mental health condition & asking if you are a service user of a LA is a very odd question; it could mean you are doing an adult ed course or drive on a road that is gritted!
I would put a response in writing. Contact your local MP.
Sorry I have no expertise in HE, but it does seem very wrong.

ohlittlepea · 21/12/2017 06:32

Is it a health care professional course or similar? If so its as much your integrity that they are interested on than your prev mental health. You have been dishonest, but it does seem weird that someone reported this. Its also about them lnowing so they can adequately support you. Your tutor should be able to offer guidance and support. Be aware that you will nees to be honest in all future occupational health assessments.

hiyasminitsme · 21/12/2017 06:33

I agree with you; you do not have a mental health condition

the OP did, by definition, have a mental health condition when s/he was sectioned. You can't be sectioned without having one, whether or not it is diagnosed. You have to be quite ill to be sectioned, so unless it was many years ago, or an acute episode relating to a clear precipitant, then it is entirely possible that the OP still has that condition, whether or not in remission. Unless you know him/her IRL you can't say that they don't have one.

www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1983/20/section/2

PotteringAlong · 21/12/2017 06:34

Now the uni is treating me like a liar.
But you DID lie on the form. So now is the time to be honest and work with them to try and salvage something.

AstridWhite · 21/12/2017 06:43

I agree with Pottering

I also can't imagine why someone would know that you lied, or bother to report this now unless there was something else going on that has now made it highly relevant.

Is your course something where a history of MH issues would be of paramount importance?

If everything is going smoothly for you now and you are coping well with the course I can't imagine they will throw you off it lightly, especially if you can argue that you didn't lie on the form, merely interpreted the question a certain way because it was phrased ambiguously.

But if you can't make a good case for that and it's obvious that you did actually lie then you will just have to apologise and say you were frightened of the stigma, wanted a clean slate and didn't see how it was relevant.

Depending on how/why it matters and how your MH is now, they may or may not choose to drop it.

underneaththeash · 21/12/2017 06:45

If it is a protected health profession, then you have a legal duty to disclose any mental or physical health conditions as defined by the relevant professional body.

The GMC produce guidance on educational institutions, which says that schools have a duty to support their students with mental health conditions, it also says that being open and trustworthy is an important part of being a doctor.

If you have been sectioned previously then you must have/have had a mental health condition even though it has not been diagnosed.

Of course, it depends on what course you're doing. If its a non-vocational course, then they would have a job explaining why it is relevant for you to disclose sensitive personal medical history.

hiyasminitsme · 21/12/2017 07:01

They are probably worried that you lack insight, which is a bad prognostic factor. Continuing down the line of discrimination is a really bad idea. You did lie on the form. By mistake, maybe, but you did. Put your hands up to it, explain, be open and you might be fine. Continue to protest that you filled in the form right and they will probably throw the book at you. Good luck with it all OP

Original poster

thisisthend · 21/12/2017 09:41

Thanks for the replies. The course is social work. I was sectioned six years ago for attempted suicide, so does not have relevance now and I was not diagnosed with anything. Some of you are saying that I did lie, but honestly I did not. I really did not think that question applied to me. Service user of a LA is not the same thing as mental health patient. If they had asked have you ever had contact with the mental health services, of course I would have said 'yes'. Regarding discrimination, I think there is some of that in there. I left the meeting in tears because my tutor told me 'I need counselling.' I think that was discriminatory. I put that in a complaint to the uni but they omitted it. It's a very difficult situation to be in.

OP posts:

titchy · 21/12/2017 10:00

You absolutely should have been upfront with them from the very beginning. It isn't up to you to judge whether it's relevant or not - that's a judgement for the university and professional body. Omitting that - and being sectioned for a suicide attempt is pretty damn major - indicates your judgement is very poor.

You need to engage fully with the university and ask how proactively what you need to do next. Admit you didn't fully understand the question, make a full disclosure now (let them contact your GP etc) and ask that your place be reconsidered by their Fitness to practice panel, or whoever considers cases where applicants give a positive answer.

Mishappening · 21/12/2017 10:08

As a former social worker I am sure that the powers that be are fine with having someone on the course with a previous mental health problem. Many social workers (and indeed folk in other professions) have had or do have such illnesses. I suspect there is more to this than meets the eye - who is this person who alerted the college to your previous problems? It could be that they are concerned for your well-being, as social work is a very very high stress occupation.

Engage with the course tutors and seek their advice - TBH, if you do not, they might question your suitability for your chosen profession, in which self-insight is a prerequisite.

hiyasminitsme · 21/12/2017 10:41

a suicide attempt 6 years ago won't have any bearing on your ability to do the course

being seen to lie about it (even if it was a misunderstanding) will do so

be open and honest from now and it should be fine

bevelino · 21/12/2017 10:42

OP I hope this problem resolves. Who would report you to your university and why? Also how would the person reporting know anything about the information you disclosed to the university?

LIZS · 21/12/2017 10:47

If you were sectioned you had a mh condition at the time. Therefore you should have disclosed it. Your best bet is to be frank now and hope that they accept it was a one off and dealt with.

namechange2222 · 21/12/2017 11:11

I have known people be sectioned, e.g., by police. The mental health services have assessed as not having a mental health issue.
Therefore it's not entirely correct to state that being sectioned equates to MH problem. ( It can be behaviours associated with drugs / alcohol or severe life stresses )
I know I've said it here before and got shouted down but I also don't agree that to threaten suicide a person necessarily has a MH problem. Some people don't want to be alive anymore

stereophonically · 21/12/2017 11:14

I can see it from both sides. It is a lie in a way, but also quite discriminatory for the university to throw you off the course! You need to be frank and open with them. But their course of action seems extreme.

WildRosesGrow · 21/12/2017 11:23

Just because you made a suicide attempt years ago, does not necessarily mean that you are currently suffering from a mental health problem.

If I were you, then I would accept the suggestion of counselling, in order to put this issue to bed. It can help you reflect on the problems you may have had in the past and how you would deal with them differently now. This might not be what you want to do but if it keeps you on your university course, then it has got to be worth trying.

Social care is always going to be a challenging career. It doesn't mean that people with mental health problems currently or in the past should be excluded but looking after yourself, including taking advice from other professionals such as your tutors, is sensible.

I would try to let it go about whoever raised this issue, it has happened and you need to work to convince your university that if anything, it was an inadvertent omission.

NotSupposedtobeHere · 21/12/2017 11:50

As a tutor who does a lot of pastoral care, it is absolutely NOT discriminatory to suggest to a student they need counselling. It is our responsibility to ensure that students are fit to study, and suggest sources of help if we suspect that they are not.

Your tutor was offering you help. It worries me that you respond so adversely. 6 years on from a suicide attempt is actually not that long.

And I would imagine that in a degree such as Social Work there’s quite a heavy responsibility to ensure that student social workers’ health has no potential bearing on their work with clients.

You have a responsibility to ensure that your own issues do not cloud your work with clients. You sound very stressed - could you think about accepting help and support? It will show that you’re taking a professional approach and responsibility for your own well-being.

thegrinchreaper · 21/12/2017 16:52

I'm not surprised you're stressed. Someone is trying to cause you trouble and your uni is acting appallingly.
It is your right to not bring up the past if it isn't affecting you now. You can't get thrown off the course for having poor present mental health let alone a long time ago. Why they are threatening you with this I do not know.
Pastoral care and support should be available at all times to all students but accessing it should be a choice.
I'm sorry about this situation OP I hope you get it sorted

TynesideBlonde · 21/12/2017 16:59

Look at the uni’s ‘fitness to practice’ Policy. As others have said it applies to health care, midwifery, teaching etc.

HerSymphonyAndSong · 21/12/2017 17:05

It will not be about your ability to study - it may well have a bearing on placement locations or occupational health clearance. However, regardless of whether it is found to be a fitness to practise issue you should be treated with fairness and sensitivity

Flip

1 2 3 4

Swipe left for the next trending thread