‘Berated’ for mental health concerns

The West Coast has the highest suicide rate in the country but a health board member says he has been ‘‘berated’’ for speaking out.

The number of suicide victims is double the road toll on the West Coast where, in the year to June, 10 people took their own lives compared with seven the year before. West Coast hospitals see one or two attempted suicides or selfharm a week.

West Coast DHB member Peter Neame has called for West Coast DHB chairwoman Jenny Black to resign after he was criticised for speaking out about the lack of mental health services.

Neame has been an outspoken advocate for changes to the mental health system. He regularly speaks to the media and writes letters to the editor about the health system.

He is a retired mental health nurse who has written three books on mental health, suicide and murder. He also worked with mentally ill killers in the prison system in Australia.

He said he told media that a suicidal man came to his Cobden home seeking help. Neame rang the mental health emergency team and waited for two hours before driving the man to hospital, where he remains admitted in the mental health unit.

‘‘I thought someone would turn up. The man was a danger to himself, and I was at risk myself. He had a 30-year history in the mental health system including previous suicide attempts. He needed an inpatient assessment to protect him, his family and the public. He had been seen by the crisis team the day before and walked out,’’ he said.

Neame raised the issue at the March board meeting but got no response until chairwoman Black called a members-only meeting.

‘‘They harangued me for 20 minutes about speaking out. All of them. They said I was grandstanding and just wanting my name in the paper and breaching board guidelines. I told them if they wanted to censor me, why didn’t they do it at the public meeting,’’ he said.

In an open letter to Black, calling for her resignation, he said he had a democratic right to speak out and was not an ‘‘obsequious seat warmer’’.

‘‘As an elected board member I have a duty to bring the concerns of the West Coast public both to the board and make them public should I see fit. Instead of dealing with the very important issues I have raised, particularly the need for immediate care for suicidal mentally ill people, you used this meeting to conduct a tirade of personal criticism,’’ he said.

‘‘We should have 100 mental health beds on the West Coast. We have nine,’’ he said.

Black declined to comment.

Where to get help:

Lifeline – 0800 543 354. Depression Helpline (8am – 12midnight) – 0800 111 757 Healthline – 0800 611 116 Suicide Crisis Helpline – 0508 828 865