A worrying account

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Mum's fight to free autistic daughter

A distraught mother is battling to free her autistic daughter from a

psychiatric hospital.

Pensioner Olive Joy has written to The Queen, Tony Blair and her MP

Philip Davies for help.

Mrs Joy claims police " misinterpreted " 40-year-old Frances' odd

behaviour when they arrested her in Shipley last December and took

her to the cells at Keighley where she was detained under the Mental

Health Act.

She was later sectioned and taken to Bradford's Lynfield Mount

Hospital where she is still being kept in a secure ward.

Mrs Joy's campaign comes as a health watchdog publishes a scathing

report about the treatment of some mental health patients by Bradford

District Care Trust, which runs the hospital.

The report by Bradford District Care Patient and Public Involvement

Forum says some patients are being misdiagnosed, over-medicated and

subjected to excessive use of intrusive therapies Mrs Joy, 77,

said: " Everyone knows Frances in Shipley.

" She does chunter and shout a bit but that's normal for her. If the

police had taken her back to Shipley station and given her a cup of

tea she would have calmed down and told them where she lived so they

could bring her home.

" Instead they drove her to Keighley where she got more and more

distressed. She's autistic, she's not mad and she needs to be home. "

Mrs Joy, of Leyburn Grove, Shipley, fears Frances is deteriorating

rapidly.

She said: " She's like a wild animal, they've put her on medication

that makes her slather.

" She just walks up and down, often with nothing on her feet and looks

dishevelled. I'm worried for her, she wants to come home but they

won't let her because she's in such a state but she's only like that

because she's there where she shouldn't be. "

Mrs Joy says although she wants Frances home she still needs extra

help and claims proposed care packages put together by Lynfield Mount

and psychiatric community care have been halted because of a lack of

funding.

She said: " I'm 77 and she's a strong, young woman. I can look after

her but she can be awkward sometimes if she gets lonely or bored. I

need someone to come in and do activities with her or take her out

for a bit to keep her occupied.

" If they came up with the money to do that she could come home. "

Shipley MP Mr Davies has taken up Mrs Joy's plea for help and has

contacted the health trust and Bradford Social Services for an

explanation.

He said: " I would be appalled if the decision to keep Frances at

Lynfield Mount had simply been made because there was not enough

money to pay for her care in the community.

" What should be done is what's right for Frances not what's expedient

for authorities. "

Frances was only diagnosed as autistic two years ago although Mrs Joy

believes her condition was triggered by a serious road accident when

she was 13 and her behavioural problems began.

Before her arrest Frances regularly attended SACAR, a charity

dedicated to supporting people with Asperger Syndrome and Autism.

A spokesman at the Manningham Lane-based centre said although Frances

had impaired communication skills she was still a " very intelligent "

woman with specific needs.

The spokesman said: " I don't believe Lynfield Mount is the right

environment for Frances. She needs specialist help but there is no

residential service for people like her on the autistic spectrum in

Bradford. "

SACAR was set up in 1999 to support parents and carers of people with

High Functioning Autism and Asperger Syndrome across the district and

to help people with the conditions be socially included, get training

opportunities and ultimately jobs.

A West Yorkshire police spokesman confirmed Frances had been detained

under the Mental Health Act.

Bradford District Care Trust said any concerns of Mrs Joy's would be

dealt with through the Trust's complaints procedure.

A spokesman added: " Our services are constantly reviewed and

inspected to ensure we provide the most appropriate care packages for

all our service users, tailored to their individual needs. "

5:00pm Tuesday 9th May 2006