RRN response: 45 years in hospital, BBC investigation

Today, the BBC published a story sharing the heartbreaking experience of Kasibba, an autistic woman with a learning disability who was detained in hospital for 45 years, including an incomprehensible 25 years in solitary confinement, for no medical reason.

Kasibba’s harrowing and unjustifiable detention ended thanks to the incredible work of Changing Our Lives, who altered the damaging narrative around Kasibba and insisted on rights respecting support. See her story shared in this powerful video made last year.

It can be incredibly difficult for autistic people and people with learning disabilities to get the right support in the community; bespoke packages of care are not readily available and risk narratives act to restrict liberty and access. This lack of appropriate, timely support causes and exacerbates unnecessary suffering, inappropriate detention and maintains routine breaches of people’s human rights.

Today there are more than 2000 people inappropriately detained within hospitals in England. Under the previous government there was significant focus on getting people out of hospital and into the community with the care and support they need through the Building the Right Support programme. However, it appears this is not being similarly prioritised by the new government.

The RRN has worked with families who have fought for years – many who continue to fight today – to get their loved ones out of hospital. For people like Kasibba who do not have family to advocate for them, the barriers would be insurmountable were it not for independent advocates and organisations such as Changing Our Lives.

You can hear the RRN’s Alexis Quinn on BBC’s File on 4 speaking on this and the potential risks and opportunities posed by reform to the Mental Health Act. The programme explores Kasibba’s story, alongside those of Beth, who bravely shared the experiences of her daughter Amelia, and Adrian and his daughter Maeve courageously sharing their experiences. Alexis will also appear on tomorrow’s episode of Women’s Hour, at 10am on BBC Radio 4.