The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
‘We can’t say Carseview
ADundee couple say they have been left fearing for their son’s life following a series of “extremely concerning” incidents at NHS Tayside facilities.
Ryan Caswell, 19, was first detained at the city’s Carseview mental health unit in January 2020.
He has been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder and a learning disability, and has significant communication issues.
Police are understood to be investigating allegations of a physical assault on Ryan last month at the centre.
His parents, Paul and Irene Caswell, also allege he has at times been sedated and restrained instead of being given proper medical treatment.
A local MSP has written to the Scottish Governmentappointed independent oversight group on Tayside’s mental health services calling for their concerns to be investigated “as a matter of urgency”.
NHS Tayside says the team caring for Ryan is regularly in direct contact with the family and that their complaints are being “addressed and independently investigated”.
Ryan had surgery to remove his gallbladder in June 2019, several months before he was first detained at Carseview.
After obtaining his medical notes, the Caswell family say they discovered medication to reduce Ryan’s stomach acid production following the procedure was repeatedly lowered without their knowledge or consent.
Mr and Mrs Caswell act as Ryan’s legal guardians.
They say psychotropic drugs were used “as required” to control challenging behaviour linked to his discomfort instead of addressing the underlying issues.
He is currently on a delayed discharge list waiting for a community placement.
Mr Caswell, 64, said: “I think that place needs to fundamentally change.
“You could end up with something as simple as an appendicitis where Ryan
says he has a sore tummy, they sedate him and the next morning he doesn’t wake up. That, for me, is extremely concerning.
“I’m just perpetually worried all the time right now that something drastic is going to happen with Ryan that could be easily resolved but they’ve failed to take the appropriate action.”
An independent probe is already looking into an incident where it is alleged staff did not investigate why bloody paper towels were discovered in Ryan’s bathroom.
A further incident, in March 2021, where Ryan had to be monitored overnight after being given the wrong drugs, was only uncovered via a note in his records because it was not disclosed to his family.
The Caswells say they have serious concerns about the amount of information they are being given, along with apparent inconsistences from medical notes.
In June 2020, a consultant wrote to Ryan’s parents and his GP to say he was eating, drinking and going to the toilet normally.
His medical notes reveal he was actually on five fibre drinks and two separate laxatives a day at the time.
Ryan’s body weight plummeted by 13% over a
three-month period between July and October but the family say they were told access to a dietician was not available.
They say initial investigations by private consultants discovered a previously undiagnosed issue with his colon.
In autumn 2020, there were two incidents where Ryan had his foot stamped on by another patient at Carseview.
Mr and Mrs Caswell also note several examples of what they call a “general lack of care”.
This includes them being forced to cut Ryan’s hair with battery-operated clippers and trim his nails, both in the car park, because this was not being done by staff.
They say this was particularly troubling as Ryan had a wound on his head at the time and his hair was getting matted into it.
Ryan went on to stay at a community placement in Aberdeen that September.
Mr and Mrs Caswell say hundreds of pounds worth of his belongings were missing or unaccounted for when they went to collect his inventory.
They were also given with a bag of Ryan’s birthday cards and presents from that July which had been kept in an office and were not given to him.