THE WA coroner will hold a public inquest into the suicides of five Alma Street patients after relatives complained a WA health department investigation was superficial.
Families contacted this week welcomed coroner Alistair Hope’s decision to investigate the 2011 and 2012 deaths of Ruby Nicholls-Diver, Carly Elliott, Michael Thomas, Anthony Edwards and Stephen Robson.
Mr Hope will look at each death before calling in experts to discuss possible links.
Messrs Edwards and Robson’s deaths hadn’t been included in a previous inquiry by chief psychiatrist Rowan Davidson, which was given the narrow brief of looking only at the centre’s admission and discharge procedures.
That review also missed the 2011 suicide deaths of Clayton Robinson, Neil Marcial and Kim Smee. While not included in the latest inquest, the coroner’s office said, “if they have been reported to our office then they will be investigated”.
Mr Marcial’s sister Patricia says she wants her brother’s death investigated, “but I haven’t had the courage to read through the notes and investigation reports from Neil’s file at the coroner’s office”.
Speaking on Tuesday, which would have been the father of four’s 36th birthday, Patricia says her brother was a known patient who’d relapsed and died at home after Alma Street could not assess him for six weeks.
Ms Elliot’s father Vince says receiving his letter from the coroner’s office two weeks ago took him back to the day he’d discovered his daughter’s corpse: “It was a shock, it takes you right back. But this is what we fought for, I don’t want more people to die like this.
“A coroner’s inquest puts some value on Carly’s life, which was already precious.”
He says Dr Davidson’s review, “didn’t change anything”. Findings of a second review by WA neurosurgeon Bryant Stokes were released in November and identified major shortcomings which contributed to premature deaths of mental health patients.
The latest inquiry comes as the coroner’s office also investigates the deaths of 10 people since 2007 at WA’s biggest mental health inpatient unit at Graylands hospital.
Another inquest into the 2008 suicide death in Mexico of 39-year-old mother-of-four Erin Berg, who was in Alma Street’s care when she flew out of Perth, will reconvene in August.
by CARMELO AMALFI