Suicide woman's family hold vigil

Joan Cooper's family say she was not spotted for three hours

The family of a Birmingham woman who hanged herself while in the care of a mental health trust have held a vigil outside the unit where she died.

Joan Cooper, 53, who had a history of severe depression, was put in the care of Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Trust in June.

She tied a sheet around the doorknob of a room at the unit in Bordesley Green and killed herself on 14 July.

Mrs Cooper's family say they cannot believe she was not spotted for almost three hours.

Nurses suspended

Her husband, John, said: "My wife died in a mental health unit and really it is something you could expect if it had happened outside but not inside a place where she was supposed to be looked after."

Family took part in a vigil outside the Bordesley Green unit

Her daughter, Louise, added: "How could it be possible that four staff that night, who had two patients each, would not have noticed this white sheet tied to the door?"

The trust has begun its own inquiry into Mrs Cooper's death and is awaiting the results of a coroner's inquest.

In a statement released on Thursday afternoon, Sue Turner, the chief executive of Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Trust, said: "We would like to express our sincere condolences to the family of Joan Cooper.

"We have serious concerns about the quality of care we provided and are reviewing her case as a matter of urgency, during which time two nurses will be suspended.

"We hope the family will be involved and help us in this review.

"The board takes the issue of suicides very seriously."

Mrs Cooper is not the first patient to die in the care of a mental health care trust in Birmingham.

An internal report by North Birmingham Mental Health Trust in 2001 examined 26 deaths and recommended the need for a universal suicide risk assessment.