Publisher Health

A mental health trust mixed up the names of two teenagers who died in its care in a report seen by one of their families, it has emerged.

Christie Harnett, Emily Moore and Nadia Sharif lost their lives in an eight-month period up to February 2020.

In a report given to Nadia’s parents, who are from Middlesbrough, the trust mistakenly called her “Christie” at one stage, leaving them “angry and upset”.

Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Trust apologised for the “appalling” error.

The trust’s current chief executive, Brent Kilmurray, who was not in post when the teenagers died, also said: “I’m incredibly sorry for what happened in that case.

“Given everything that happened, that was a serious mistake, and again, I reiterate my apology to Nadia’s family.”

All three teenagers had experienced complex mental health problems.

Investigations by the NHS into how they died after harming themselves in the same way found multiple failings in their care and treatment.

Christie, from County Durham, and Nadia both died aged 17 in West Lane Hospital, in Middlesbrough.

It was found to have been “unstable and overstretched” at the time. Services for children and young people there are now provided by another mental health trust.

Emily, also from County Durham, died in February 2020. She had been in West Lane, but then spent time in another hospital run by a neighbouring trust, before being moved to an adult unit run by Tees, Esk, and Wear Valleys after turning 18.

This move to adult services was found to have been based “entirely” on age and did not take her clinical needs into consideration.

Emily’s father David Moore said he had tried desperately to stop her being moved.

“At the last meeting we had, I was actually down on my hands and knees begging, saying, ‘please do not send her to Tees, Esk and Wear Valley’,” he said.

All three young women died after using the same method of self-harm, and the trust was heavily criticised by investigators for failing to properly recognise the danger posed by this to each of them.

The families of all three teenagers now want a public inquiry.

The trust is also facing being prosecuted over Christie’s death, with a hearing scheduled at Teesside Magistrates’ Court on 21 February. If found guilty it could face a large fine.

The trust has apologised for failings in the three young women’s care and treatment, and said it had invested heavily in patient safety since they died, spending £8m and recruiting an extra 700 members of staff.

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