Death raises alarm about mental health care
Man who died by suicide had visited hospital ER earlier in day, family says
The Canadian Mental Health Association’s (CMHA) Saskatchewan division is raising concerns about access to mental health care following the death of a man who sought help at a Regina hospital prior to his passing.
According to CBC, family members have identified the man whose body was found in Wascana Lake on May 21 as Samwel Uko, a resident of Abbotsford, B.C. His family said Uko died by suicide.
Before his death, Uko’s family said he sought help at a Regina hospital. A video uploaded to Snapchat also appears to show Uko in the emergency room speaking to staff. In the video, Uko repeatedly says “I need help.” Uko’s family said he later left the hospital.
At 7:36 p.m. that day, police responded to the north side of Wascana Lake after residents reported seeing a man swimming. A search of the lake led to the discovery of an unresponsive man under the water. He was pronounced deceased at 9:18 p.m. by EMS. The Coroner’s Service has confirmed he was 20 year old.
The details of Uko’s hospital visit before his death has sparked concerns.
Uko’s family said that he was asked to fill out forms because he is a resident of British Columbia. A family member also said that due to COVID-19 restrictions, no one was allowed to accompany Uko while he waited for treatment.
David Nelson, a senior program consultant with CMHA, said the challenges of getting mental health treatment in the province is a “fairly major problem” that was happening before the pandemic. Nelson criticized the Saskatchewan Health Authority’s (SHA) policy of not allowing patients to have visitors with them.
“That simply is not appropriate when we have someone who’s got a major mental illness going in there, and so it makes it very difficult for people to get proper help when they go in there,” said Nelson.
In a statement, the SHA said there are exceptions to the visitor restriction policy for those who have challenges such as mobility, hearing, visual or memory impairment. The statement said “other challenges” that might require a support person’s presence would be assessed on a case-by-case basis.
Nelson also took issue with Uko being asked to fill out forms because of the mental state he was in.
“The equivalent would be someone comes in with a massive heart attack or someone comes in with a major automobile trauma. You don’t sit there and say ‘Oh, I’m sorry, we can’t really help you until you fill out all these forms,’ ” said Nelson.
Nelson said hospitals are supposed to have a psychiatric nurse available from 7:30 a.m. to midnight to assist patients with mental health concerns. However, he said there have been several reports from patients where such a nurse was not available when they visited the hospital. Instead, Nelson said patients sometimes may have to wait hours before they can see a psychiatrist.
Earlier this week, Premier Scott
Moe offered his condolences to the family and said the province needs to continue to increase funding for mental health.
“We need to commit to continuing to do that in the future, and not just through placing the funding, but through ensuring that funding is in turn giving us outcomes in our communities. And unfortunately all too often, the outcome is tragic,” said Moe.
Danielle Chartier, the opposition critic for mental health and addiction, said Uko’s story is “heartbreaking,” but not unusual.
‘I’ve spoken to so many people over the years, and in more recent times as well, who present at our hospital emergency rooms in Saskatchewan with mental health distress and often leave without getting the care that they need for a number of reasons,” said Chartier.
The NDP Opposition has been advocating for specialized mental health emergency rooms.
The SHA said it is investigating the video Uko posted to Snapchat and is working with other agencies to ensure it is “fully reviewed.”