Mental Health Report into TORAN HENRY

CITIZENS COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS NEW ZEALAND
Established in 1969 by the Church of Scientology to investigate and expose psychiatric violations of human rights

26 September 2008
MEDIA RELEASE

Mental Health Report into TORAN HENRY

The Citizens Commission on Human Rights is appalled at justifications by mental health bosses in their lack of care for Toran Henry. It is another clear indictment of the mental health system and certainly not the right place for treating young persons expressing difficulties in life.

The report plainly shows there was no thorough physical or medical examination, let alone an assessment, prior to treatment with anti depressants which are known to have severe side effects.

That these drugs were also prescribed totally against his parent and caregiver’s wishes reveals a culture of arrogance. More money and staff are never going to solve these issues.

The hard cold facts are that a high school student has met a tragic, untimely and preventable death, two weeks after being prescribed psychotropic drugs. This is an anacceptable outcome for anyone, let alone a 17 year old young man.

It’s time the spotlight was turned on our mental ill-health system. There is no accountabilty being called for, except by Maria, Toran’s devoted and devastated mother.

It shouldn’t take the deaths of our loved ones for action to occur. If such tragedies occurred in other sectors, investigations would focus on ensuring what exacly happened and how to stop it from reoccuring.

Instead we see a circling of the psychiatric wagons once more in a report designed to mitigate any wrongdong and focus on throwing more tax dollars into an already failing business.

Caution: No one should stop taking any psychiatric drug without the advice and assistance of a competent medical doctor.

Some facts people should know:

There are no blood tests, X-rays, brain scans or any scientific/medical means by which psychiatry’s diagnoses can be verified.

Hence the Commission suggests all treatment options should include checking for underlying medical conditions that could cause a patient’s mental or emotional duress. Always find the cause of the person’s problem. Never be satisfied with a mere explanation of the symptoms.
The government should not be approving such drugs for mental “disorders” that cannot be medically/scientifically proven to exist.

Recommendations around drug side effects:

1) Medsafe must act in the public’s interest by swiftly acting on adverse reaction reports and taking immediate action to issue warnings.
2) All treatment options should include checking for underlying medical conditions that could cause a patient’s mental or emotional duress.
3) Appropriations for mental health problems should only be provided on the provision that full, searching physical examinations are first undertaken to determine that no underlying untreated physical condition is causing the person’s mental or emotional problems. Such examinations would be covered under existing health coverage.
4) Doctors should follow the British National Health Service's Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) medical advisory, which recommends first line treatment for mental or emotional problems; involve non-harmful medical solutions, including regular sleep, exercise and nutrition.
5) Doctors, individuals and parents should report all instances of patients who have been prescribed psychiatric drugs and experienced adverse effects to CARM (Centre for Adverse Reactions Monitoring, PO Box 913, Dunedin).

ends

© Scoop Media