Patient's parents shared fears with staff - court

The parents of a young woman who took her own life at a mental health hospital begged staff to "dramatically change their approach" on how their daughter was being treated, the Old Bailey has heard.

Alice Figueiredo, 22, was a patient on the Hepworth Ward at Goodmayes Hospital, where she died in July 2015.

The North East London NHS Trust, which runs the hospital, is charged with corporate manslaughter, which it denies.

Ward manager Benjamin Aninakwa, 55, denies manslaughter by gross negligence.

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In an email shown to the court, Alice's stepfather Max Figueireido shared "deep concerns" at how the ward manager was treating his daughter.

He said: "My appeal to you is to change your approach dramatically.

"Your approach is to harangue her into admitting that she is somehow not severely depressed and merely taking advantage of agency staff in charge of her care."

The court previously heard there was a perception on the ward that Alice was self-harming to induce guilt in the nursing team.

Mr Figueiredo said in a statement: "When we pointed out how unwell she was, it was often interpreted as incorrect and exaggerated in Mr Aninakwa's opinion.

"He felt she was manipulating the staff and playing games.

"What we don't need is the extinguishing of her life because people who should be helping her to recover feel like she is somehow sabotaging her own recovery."

The court also heard a statement from Alice's grandmother, Anne, who said she would speak to her on the phone almost every day.

"I always told her how special she was and that she could contact me any time, even in the night. She was a special, loving, thoughtful and caring person."

The last time she spoke to her granddaughter was on the evening of 5 July, two days before she died.

"One of the last things she said to me was: 'I just want to get on with my life.' She really wanted to get well."

The trial continues.

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