NHS has let us down, says grieving family
THE family of Michael Wheeler claim he would still be alive if he had received proper help.
Michael, a driver, lived with his twin brother David Wheeler and sister-in-law Maggie Wheeler at their flat in Westfield Hall, Hagley Road.
Mrs Wheeler said on July 24 this year they became concerned for his mental health as he was “saying strange things and seemed confused and erratic”. They called his GP and got an appointment the same day at 4pm. But as the morning went on Michael became more agitated, so they called the support team at the Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Foundation Trust’s Lyndon Clinic for advice.
Eventually Michael was taken by ambulance to the QE and seen by the RAID team.
Mrs Wheeler said: “Michael’s death should not have happened. He was in work at the start of that week. As soon as we saw signs of him acting strange we immediately sought help – only to be let down by the NHS, starting at the QE.”
She said his death had left her devastated and had a pro- found effect on her husband. “Since Michael’s divorce 20 years ago, Michael has lived with us most of that time, so we were all incredibly close,” she said.
“My husband is struggling to come to terms with his brother’s death and has been put on anti-depressants to help him get through the grieving process. This is a terrible tragedy that should not have happened had he been provided with a treatment plan. Michael had no previous history of mental health and nor was he under his GP for medication so this was a complete surprise to us.
“Action needs to be taken to ensure this doesn’t happen again, and we will not be satisfied until we see action being taken to prevent this kind of mis-treatment.”