A girl's "felt like a caged animal & # 39; during his four-year stay at the psychiatric hospital

One teenager described how she "felt like a caged animal" during her four-year stay in a psychiatric hospital.

Faith Wilthew, now 18, was admitted at the age of 14 to West Lane Hospital, a crisis center in Middlesbrough.

She states that she was told that it was her "own choice" to self-destruct and that the staff had not offered her any support when she had posted disturbing signs.

Her mother, Kelly, also described how, during a visit to Faith, she had seen blood on the walls, before staff members told her that it was "her choice" to hit her. repeatedly against his head.

Twenty staff members were suspended from the mental health facility after claiming they used "unapproved" techniques to move patients, reports the BBC.

The Quality of Care Commission is overseeing an investigation at the hospital after concerns were expressed in November that staff were transferring patients "uneducated and non-compliant with the policy of trust".

Faith went on to explain how she was sometimes raised from a bed by her feet and hands before being left on the ground and remained motionless.

She said, "I felt like a caged animal. Most of the time, I felt trapped. I went there at age 14 without a scar on the body and I went out at age 18 full of scars.

"I was just told that it was my choice if I wanted to hurt myself.

"Sometimes they would lift me up from the bed by my hands and feet and drop me to the ground to hold me in. Things have to change."

Faith's mother, Kelly, is beaten to bring her daughter home after she cuts her off.

Kelly recounted how, during a visit to Faith, she had noticed that there was blood on the walls after we'd let Faith hit her in the head for three days.

The worried mother said, "At one point, she started banging her head against the wall.

"She did it for about 72 hours and they told her that it was her choice if she wanted to continue doing it.

"When I went to see her, there was still blood on the wall."

Elizabeth Moody, Tees, NHS Foundation's Director of Nursing NHS Foundation Trust, said: "Our priority is to ensure the safety of all users of our services and we expect our staff to respect its dignity and well-being.

"We take all the allegations that might suggest the opposite extremely seriously.

"Our team of staff is examined twice a day by our clinical leaders to ensure the quality of care provided to young people at all times."