Unwell man stabbed stranger after NHS failings

A stabbing could have been prevented if the attacker received better mental health treatment, according to an ombudsman.

A 31-year-old man, since diagnosed with schizophrenia, attacked a member of the public in 2020 following "poor mental health care" from an NHS trust.

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) said there was a "series" of failings by the trust, now known as Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust, in the year before the stabbing.

The trust apologised for "where care and support did not meet expected standards" and said it had strengthened community services.

According to the independent complaints body, the man had initially been detained by police and admitted to hospital in October 2019.

His mother, 57, repeatedly reported his behaviour, which included ripping up carpets and blocking her from leaving the house, to mental health services the following April and May, during the Covid pandemic.

She told staff she was "too scared" to be at home and hid in the car for hours while "calling staff begging them to help".

According to the PHSO report, the NHS trust knew the man was in crisis but, contrary to guidelines, told the woman to contact police instead of developing a care plan.

Her son was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage and detained in hospital, but released in June 2020, the ombudsman said.

He received three phone calls from a care team in the following three months but was not seen by the care team in person.

The trust discharged him from its care that October and he stabbed a man in his 30s the following month, according to the report.

PHSO chief executive Rebecca Hilsenrath said the attacker was "a vulnerable man" who posed a risk to himself and the public, which "tragically became reality".

"It highlights the stark consequences of poor mental health care," she said.

The ombudsman found the NHS trust's failings might have contributed to the man's mental health decline.

Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust spokesperson said: "This was a deeply serious and complex case, and we recognise the distress experienced by the family".

They also said "concerns raised in 2021 were fully investigated", adding that the trust was "open and transparent throughout" the PHSO process.

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Additional reporting by PA Media

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