Why won't they help her?

Lost Dub

The situation as it stands is....My friends' parent is very ill. He has a brain injury that when not looked after with tablets sends his brain into overdrive and sets off his bi-polar disorder coupled with epileptic seizures. When this happens it he gets very high and mighty and thinks he's cured and this is the start of a few weeks of chaos for my friend as when he is not well, whatever brain injury he has give him the energy to stay awake for days on end.

I ask the question above because for 2 weeks now we have been trying to get him into a mental hospital and they don't want to know. This is the same situation that happens every time he is not well. He had his accident 36 or so years ago. Obviously she is the closest to him so she knows when this situation is starting as it takes about 3 days for the full madness of his actions to begin. So we ring his doctors to try get him into hospital and they literally fob her off saying she is a bit quick to get him into hospital.

It is a repeat of the same situation she had last year with him. Usually it takes a stay of about 6 months to get him well enough for a couple of years but, like last year, they let him out after 3 weeks, chaos ensues, then he ends up back for the 6 months. So now, in the middle of the chaos, he has been in A&E twice in 4 days for 2 more head injury's from falling from his epileptic seizures and tonight he made his way back home from the hospital.

Has anyone been in this position before that could lend some advice, please. He is going to end up dead from a fall if he isn't put back in hospital. Apparently all the doctors that deal with him are on holidays. It's really disgusting watching this going on.......My friend is practically on the verge of a breakdown and it's tough to watch when she is hitting a wall every time she tries to sort him out.

Thanks in advance

emzolita

I dont know if he needs to be in a mental hospital. An acquired brain injury and seizures aren't a mental illness.
he may need better monitoring of meds and more frequent visits to his neurologist.
If he's under a neuro team in hosp, get your friend to completely tell the story and show how the current meds arent working.
Neuro meds can mess with a persons personality too, so alot of his bi-polar symtoms could be from the meds rather than his injury.
suggest to the neuro team new meds and more regular appointments, as he's not doing well between appointments.
hope this helps. x

louglee

often the mental hospitals don't take patients if they have another medical condition such as epilepsy, perhaps it would be possible to bring him to a general hospital which has a mental hospital attached, they could manage the epilepsy etc in the general hospital but with input from the psychiatrists.
On another note perhaps the mental health act 2001 might apply in this case, here is a link to some information on it on the citizens information website. Best of luck

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/health/mental_health/admission_to_a_psychiatric_hospital.html