Lee West inquest: Nurse tells of patient's hospital escape

Lee West died at Postwick on January 20 after being struck twice while walking on the A47. He was 20 years old.

At the time, Mr West, from Colchester, was an inpatient at Southern Hill, a private mental health hospital in Mundesley on the north Norfolk coast.

He had been transferred to Norfolk due to a lack of available beds in Essex.

Mr West was receiving treatment at the hospital for two weeks before the tragedy, having been section under the Mental Health Act.

During day two of the inquest, one of its nurses described how the aspiring DJ had been able to abscond from the hospital via a gate she had opened.

Giving evidence to Norfolk Coroner's Court, Jennifer Dean said she had been managing another ward that evening, but was called to the hospital's courtyard to help respond to another incident.

Here she spent around half an hour speaking with Mr West and another patient, during which she said he was in "jovial" spirits.

But when Ms Dean went to return to her own ward at around 8pm, Mr West snuck up behind her and manoeuvred ahead to leave through the gate she had just unlocked.

The nurse said she initially suspected he may have been "messing around" but he soon disappeared out of sight and left the hospital grounds.

She added: "I thought that if I had tried to restrain him or run and grab him it would have escalated things and I would have been unable to stop him.

"I was trying to look calm and make Lee think it was a controlled situation and that he would come back. Internally, I was not calm."

The court heard that after he left, Ms Dean and her colleagues conducted searches of the campus and surrounding areas but were unable to locate him.

The hospital then alerted the police to Mr West's escape. 

Lee West, who died on the A47 at Postwick (Image: Lee West Snr)

Around two hours later, at 10pm, he was seen on foot on the A47 at Postwick - 22 miles away from the hospital. 

During her evidence, Ms Dean admitted she had not followed the hospital's safety protocol when she unlocked the gate without a second colleague being present - adding she had been "distracted" by the other patient at the time.

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Asked by area coroner Samantha Goward whether she had any concerns about Mr West's behaviour during the encounter, she said: "Not at all."

She added: "I was speaking to Lee, but talking to the other patient at the same time. I did not realise Lee had stepped behind me.

"He was still in a laughing, jovial way so I thought to begin with he was having a bit of a joke."

A SMUGGLED HACKSAW

Southern Hill Hospital in Mundesley (Image: Geraldine Scott)

Meanwhile, the court heard that during the two weeks Mr West was being treated at Southern Hill there were several occasions where he self-harmed.

One time he had been taken on an escorted trip to the local Men's Shed as a wellbeing activity.

It later emerged that he had smuggled a hacksaw back from the trip.

There was also a separate occasion where he caused "superficial" injuries to himself using another item.

The inquest continues.

• Do you need support? Samaritans can be reached at all hours on 116 123. Alternatively, the NHS First Response Service is available 24/7 by calling 111 and selecting the mental health option.