Friday 11 May 2012

And Just Whose ‘Lack Of Understanding’ Are We Talking About?

Police fired Tasers at a terrified Alzheimer’s sufferer in a troubling incident that reopens the debate on the controversial weapon.
Boooo! Hisss! Nasty, brutal police! But wait…
Mr Russell, who has a daughter from a previous marriage and married Diane in September 2010, began being forgetful about three years ago. He went to hospital for a scan and Alzheimer’s disease was diagnosed.
The farm worker was forced to retire and over recent months his condition became worse. Mrs Russell said he began ‘pushing’ her and doctors decided to section him under the Mental Health Act to review his treatment.
And that’s where it all went wrong…
On March 6, two nurses and a psychiatrist visited the couple’s home and Mr Russell became agitated at hearing talk of him going to hospital. Mrs Russell said he began swearing and ‘slamming cupboards’.
She suggested he be given sweets and his favourite Noddy toy to calm him and then be driven to hospital by a neighbour. But this was rejected and the medical staff were told to go outside because they were upsetting Mr Russell.
Another case of the so-called ‘caring profession’ not wanting to listen to those who live with the patient 24/7/365 and might be better placed to know what would work?
Several hours later, a doctor, hospital consultant and social worker arrived and discussed calling an ambulance. Mr Russell became agitated again.
The doctors left and police arrived to handle the hospital transfer.
So, having handed this difficult and traumatic process over lock, stock and barrel to the police, they simply washed their hands of all responsibility.

And the police were left to try to effect a removal the only way they can. With force.
After he was tasered, a policewoman came into the kitchen crying and told Mrs Russell: ‘We didn’t want to do this, but we had no option.’
Mrs Russell said: ‘He was fighting them off because he didn’t want to go to hospital. He was petrified and scared. He was shouting “get off” as they carried him.
I was going mental and I remember saying “it’s not him, it’s the Alzheimer’s” .
That’s very true, but they can’t Taser or restrain just the Alzheimer’s while leaving your husband alone, can they?

Mental health nurses have restraint options, too, for sectioned patients. Why didn’t they consider it? Why pass it on to the overburdened police service?
‘He was not armed and wasn’t about to kill himself, they should not have tasered him.’
They didn’t want to, clearly! They have no choice, if they were to prevent him hurting himself, or further injuring them:
Two police officers are believed to have suffered minor injuries in the incident.
And the oh-so-caring NHS staff? What did they suffer?

Nothing.

They didn’t even see fit to issue a statement supporting the police, who had to step in when they abdicated their responsibility…
Sarah Moody from the Alzheimer’s Society said: ‘This unfortunate incident illustrates a lack of understanding in society of dementia and the best way to support and help people who are affected by this devastating condition.’
It does indeed. But not in the people this ‘Mail’ article seems to be trying to indicate, though…

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

Naturally there are circumstances justifying a really good tasering.

As much as I detest the weapon, multiple electrical shocks may have beneficial effects in the treatment of those intolerant of any opinions differing from their own, JULIAM.

A salt and battered said...

"They didn’t even see fit to issue a statement supporting the police, who had to step in when they abdicated their responsibility… "

Worry ye not. A condescending blogger may be panting to do it in default.

Anonymous said...

Oh they don't just do it to the police you know!

As a nurse (that's a medical type nurse, just to be clear) I've lost count of the times, working the wards or A&E, that those with mental health problems have attacked myself or colleagues. We defend ourselves as best we can, sometimes assisted by the police, and then wait patiently for a few hours for the mental health lot to appear, all the while holding down some either confused/delusional/inebriated or just bad person. And when they do eventually arrive? Yep, they spend more time telling us off for holding down the poor person (whilst maliciously dripping our blood all over them too sometimes).

They then leave after either deciding it's not their problem (personality disorder/too drunk/etc.) or very occasionally take the patient. strutting off as if to say 'look WE didn't need to hold him down' leading the chemically coshed, drooling, barely able to stand patient away.

I would love to know what their justification for leaving it to the police was, and hope somebody puts a complaint in to the NMC.

Tatty said...

Able...Wait...what ?

Is "personality disorder" not a "mental health" issue now ?

Have they now stopped differentiating between this being a "mental health issue" and just plain "being an arsehole" ?

Could make the law courts interesting...

P T Barnum said...

Personality disorders, borderline or otherwise, are the new favourite toy of the mental health professional. Stick that label on a patient and you can discharge them as untreatable, you see. Nowt we can do for 'em, they say. Someone else's problem now. I know personally of 5 people who have had their original long-standing diagnosis of x (which was being successfully managed in secondary care) suddenly swapped for a BPD and been summarily discharged from secondary care. Cameron must be so proud of those pyschiatrists...

jaded said...

OK Melvin,once again I am asking you a question I know you will ignore.
What would you have done in this exact situation?Give us your best answer given all your experience of dealing with violent people.
Please don't use Latin verbs and Shakespearean phrases as the mental health team might get confused and end up taking you in instead.
Jaded

A salt and battered said...

Being scrupulously honest, I readily confess I would not know where to start briefing you on handling this situation, Jaded.

There again, I could not contemplate briefing you on an errand to the the Coop for a bottle of milk and a packet of ginger biscuits. A thousand things could go wrong and to write a procedure for you in advance, would be such a mind-boggling task that it would be far simpler to rely upon you boiling the kettle instead...no, wait...

A salt and battered said...

@ Julia

"And Just Whose ‘Lack Of Understanding’ Are We Talking About?"

I trust you have a clearer understanding of the original non-lethal claim made by Taser for the product...together with the reasoning behind an eventual retraction of that spurious claim.

Don't thank me...to be of service to the dim is always a great joy.

blueknight said...

All very familiar. As a Police Officer I have been called to attend 'Mental Health' Hospital to help wrestle patients to the ground so that they can be injected. I have also attended a number of committals. Some have ended up in a fight.
No taser in those days but one man had a whole tin of CS spayed in his face. he did not even blink when he said. If you do that again, I'm going to go f***ing mad.
I have heard of a patient running along a roof top, while hitting his head with a hammer, diving off the end into the road and still wanting to fight. They can have incredible strength and feel no pain. I think the term is 'excited delirium'.
No doubt the man had Alzheimers (as did my mum) but the chances were that there was more going on..

jaded said...

Melvin,so close,really close to an answer.And then you spoiled it by returning to form.
Never mind.It's a start.

Leave the violent and/or mentally ill people to me.I'll leave blogging about it to you.

Tatty said...

Melv - "to be of service to the dim is always a great joy."

Well even a 1-watt lightbulb has it's uses ;)

I love you really...

JuliaM said...

"...multiple electrical shocks may have beneficial effects in the treatment of those intolerant of any opinions differing from their own, JULIAM."

I'm not sure I'd advocate that. I find destroying their arguments with reason, facts and logic works a lot better. :)

"Worry ye not. A condescending blogger may be panting to do it in default."

There's the difference between you and I, you see - I don't see everything as black and white. Do the police deserve criticism? Yes, often.

But not always. This is one such instance.

"I would love to know what their justification for leaving it to the police was, and hope somebody puts a complaint in to the NMC."

Me too, but since they'd just get a slap on the wrist (if that), it's a wonder anyone bothers.

" I know personally of 5 people who have had their original long-standing diagnosis of x (which was being successfully managed in secondary care) suddenly swapped for a BPD and been summarily discharged from secondary care."

*sigh*

JuliaM said...

"OK Melvin,once again I am asking you a question I know you will ignore.
What would you have done in this exact situation?"


A question I'd like answered too. But Melvin seems to have a knack for disappointment...

"I trust you have a clearer understanding of the original non-lethal claim made by Taser for the product..."

Manufacturers claims should be taken with a pinch of your salt. And they have been.

"They can have incredible strength and feel no pain. I think the term is 'excited delirium'."

Quite!

A salt and battered said...

"A question I'd like answered too. But Melvin seems to have a knack for disappointment..."

Permit me to disagree. WPC Jaded and yourself are suspiciously fond of a really good smacking and my innate sadism has been overly obliging.

A salt and battered said...

@ Tatty

"Well even a 1-watt lightbulb has it's uses ;)"

Offering yourself or Julia as the said source?

Lettuce is the only wrinkly on my menu, leaving the love you profess unrequited ;)

Tatty said...

"Offering yourself or Julia as the said source?"

Oh shame, that one went right over your head (pun intended). I shan't explain as doing so always detracts from the joke. Never mind. :)

Julia and I don't have wrinkles we have laughter lines... and so for so long as you are providing such mirth... ;)

James K said...

If we are allowed to shoot a violent patient with a taser, why not with a tranquilliser dart?

blueknight said...

If we are allowed to shoot a violent patient with a taser, why not with a tranquilliser dart?

If that was a serious question, the answer is because there are none available.

James K said...

If that was a serious answer, the next question is "why not"?

They do not use tasers on violent patients in mental hospitals - they sedate them if necessary. It is a pity that mental health professionals who are skilled at dealing with uncooperative and violent patients were not here in sufficient numbers to deal with this patient.

I don't blame the police for what they did; I just think they were the wrong team for this case.