Unfamiliar environment ‘You’re in a place where you’re locked in and you can’t leave … which is not fair for someone who’s just ill; he doesn’t deserve it’
George Harvey, 74, was diagnosed with vascular dementia six years ago and was sectioned.
His son, Richard Harvey, said: “When my dad first went into the hospital he was trying to get out all the time, he was angry that he was in there. He thought he was in prison and for someone who’s that fragile at that point in their life it’s a terrible thing to be going through.
“You’re in a place where you’re locked in and you can’t leave. You’re imprisoned, which is not fair for someone who’s just ill; he doesn’t deserve it. He deserves to be in his house, being cared for in his familiar surroundings,” he added.
Mr Harvey was taken to a psychiatric ward in Hertfordshire called Kingfisher Court. “He really didn’t get on well there,” his son said. “Because he was getting angry they were using a lot of sedatives on him.”
Hertfordshire Partnership University Foundation Trust, which is the trust responsible for Kingfisher Court, said: “Living with dementia can be very distressing for both the person and their carers.
We are unable to comment on individual cases, but we treat people on the basis of their clinical needs, using prescribing guidelines, in order to provide the most appropriate treatment for them.”
“Many of our service users have complex mental health needs in addition to dementia.”
Mr Harvey has now been taken off the section and lives in a private hospital, which his son said is miles away from his home.