Hospital Review Finds Errors Before Man's Death by Suicide

Blake Whittington's mother wants changes to NSW's mental health system.

In short:

Blake Whittington, 23, died by suicide after being discharged from hospital.

Albury Hospital found errors in his care.

What's next?

The coroner is investigating.

A 23-year-old man died by suicide after being discharged from hospital.

This story discusses suicide.

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Blake Whittington was a kind young man.

His mother thinks he would be alive if he got better care.

He was sent home from hospital too soon.

He died the next day.

It takes a community to help with mental health.

Blake was a kind and respectful man.

He first tried to kill himself in October.

His mental health got worse while waiting for a psychologist.

In December, police took him to hospital after he said he wanted to die.

He was sent home with a referral to a crisis team.

The crisis team did not call him until two days after he died.

The hospital did not know he died until his mother called.

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Blake's mother thinks the hospital made mistakes.

The hospital review found many errors.

The clinician who saw Blake was not familiar with the mental health system.

The clinician thought Blake would get help within 48 hours, not 72.

The review found the hospital made many mistakes.

The coroner is still investigating Blake's death.

There was no record of a meeting about Blake's care.

The hospital staff could not remember who was supposed to help Blake.

If Blake got the right help, he might still be alive.

Blake told his mother that no one from the hospital called him.

His mother is very sad and angry about what happened.

The hospital review found that the system failed Blake.

The hospital is cooperating with the investigation.

The review made many recommendations to improve care.

The hospital staff need more training to help patients like Blake.

The review recommended a new system to assess mental health risks.

Blake's mother cannot understand why the hospital did not do more to help her son.

The hospital staff have raised concerns about patient safety before.

The government is looking into what happened to Blake.

Blake's mother is speaking out to help other families.

Blake was a talented mechanic who loved his work.

His mother is raising money for a mental health charity.

Many people loved and will miss Blake.

His mother thinks he deserved better care and compassion.

She wants to help other young people get the care they need.

We fact-checked this story to make sure it is accurate.

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