When enduring a mental health crisis, the last thing most people would want is for their episode to be recorded and shared with others. Unfortunately, this was the case for a woman who was admitted to the Becklin Centre in Leeds, England.
Julie Trafford, 52, has a history of mental health issues and became severely distressed when admitted to the center. At the time, members of the National Health Service (NHS) allegedly recorded a video of Trafford trying to escape from staff. Though she told BBC she couldn’t remember much of her breakdown, she did say she “felt trapped and wanted to get away from the ward.”
Cleveland Clinic defines a mental health breakdown as a “situation that happens when you have intense physical and emotional stress, have difficulty coping, and aren’t able to function effectively. It’s the feeling of being physically, mentally, and emotionally overwhelmed by the stress of life.”
During these moments, it’s easy to act out of character or experience symptoms like panic, outbursts, paranoia, and even hallucinations.
In what the NHS trust deems to be an “isolated incident,” one of the staff members shared the vulnerable footage of Trafford’s breakdown on a WhatsApp group—consisting of about 20 people, both NHS workers and members of the public—without consent. Allegedly that employee still works for them, according to BBC.
Trafford told BBC that she felt “dirty, angry, and confused” after finding out that one of her moments of crisis was recorded and shared. She said she found out about the footage from a member of management when she was discharged in October.
“Why would someone do that?” Trafford said to BBC. “Especially the NHS employees. It is totally out of order.”
“I personally thought it was a given that he wouldn’t keep his job,” Trafford added about the employee who recorded her. “I would have hoped that they wouldn’t want someone like that in their company.”
Dr Sara Munro, chief executive of the NHS trust, told BBC that she regrets the “hurt caused by the unacceptable actions of one member of staff.” She also labeled the situation an “upsetting case,” yet claimed that patients “are safe in the care of the trust.”
However, Trafford stated she no longer would trust the Becklin Centre—which has some concerning reviews on Google—after such an occurrence.
“I wouldn’t want anyone to go there if this can happen,” she told BBC.
The post NHS Worker Shared Video of Woman’s Mental Health Breakdown on WhatsApp appeared first on VICE.
The post NHS Worker Shared Video of Woman’s Mental Health Breakdown on WhatsApp appeared first on VICE.
