Sally Brampton: Health professionals 'missed opportunites' to help agony aunt before her death

Missed opportunity: Sally Brampton died after a battle with depression
Grant Triplow/REX Shutterstock
Jamie Bullen25 October 2016

Newspaper journalist Sally Brampton took her own life after health professionals "missed opportunities" to help her, an inquest heard.

The Daily Mail agony aunt and founding editor of British magazine Elle drowned on May 10 after apparently walking into the sea near her home in St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex.

Her inquest at Hastings Coroner's Court heard the writer was "in crisis" in March 2016 and had been in contact with a private psychiatrist and a GP.

She had also been referred to local mental health services for help.

"That help did not come," assistant coroner James Healy-Pratt said, adding that she re-contacted a GP in April.

"She had not been contacted by the mental health services as agreed," the coroner told the court.

A referral was made again and it was agreed she was "out of crisis" at this stage - but her recent full clinical details, including a concerned letter from her private psychiatrist, was not provided to the relevant services.

The letter, dated March 19, was sent to the GP and stated Brampton was "in crisis" and having "strong suicidal thoughts".

The psychiatrist said Brampton hardly left the house leading up to her death and had feelings of "hopelessness and helplessness”.

Mr Healy-Pratt said: "I certainly find that there was a missed opportunity to assist Sally in March 2016."

He added that a second missed opportunity came when more information should have been provided about Brampton's condition in the re-referral.

"However we don't know that those missed opportunities would have changed Sally's outcome and that is an important factor," the coroner said.

He added that he was satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that Brampton wanted to walk into the sea.

The inquest heard from Ms Brampton's friend Emma Ridout who said of the writer: "She didn't have any confidence in the NHS helping her."

Christine Henham, a general manager at Hastings and Rother mental health services, said lessons had been learned and changes have been made since Ms Brampton's death.

Additional reporting by Press Association

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