no appropriate support when they reach a crisis. the nhs in her area has apologised. our social affairs editor alison holt has been following the story of molly and her family for almost a year now. this is her report. this is molly. she is 16 and has autism. it s at the root of her deep anxiety and eating problems. i ve been talking to molly and her parents since last summer. their experience exposes a health and care system which is failing too many young people. mental health services don t do anything until you are almost dead. there is no long term strategy, there is no planning, really, other than reacting to crisis. the queen alexandra hospital in portsmouth is a busy general hospital, not a mental health unit, yet molly has spent most of the last seven months in a side room on a children s ward here. her sensory needs mean she usually sleeps on pillows and cushions on the floor.
enjoy life, i hope. yeah. the government says it is investing in community services and recognises that people like molly need the right support in the right place. how many more mollys are there, alison? ., ., ,., how many more mollys are there, alison? ., ., . ., alison? there are no solid, official statistics. over alison? there are no solid, official statistics. over time alison? there are no solid, official statistics. over time i alison? there are no solid, official statistics. over time i have - alison? there are no solid, officialj statistics. over time i have spoken to many families in similar situations and after molly s story has gone out tonight we have heard from otherfamilies has gone out tonight we have heard from other families who say they are encountering the same problems. the national autistic society says that he has for many young people with similar concerns. like molly s parents, those families are generally really distressed because they say that children
we need to work together with the families to try to understand the children s needs. we also need to push government for a full review around children s mental health services so they can get a better deal. last month, molly s family said her behaviour became so distressed the whole of the children s ward she was on was closed to other patients. ten days later she was moved to a mental health unit, even though that hasn t helped in the past. it s ruining her life, she s been in this kind of loop for four years or more really, it seems, going round and in and out of hospital, and costing an absolute fortune. the nhs in hampshire says molly s safety has been its priority and everyone involved is doing their best to provide compassionate care. and with the right support life could be different for molly. what are your hopes for the future? to stay out of hospital and go to college. i don t know.
he plays love shine a light by katrina and the waves. and eurovision excitement builds as our very own eurovision superfan takes requests. and on bbc london: decades after being held hostage onjustice on justice newsnight, postponed, ways onjustice newsnight, postponed, ways taken for years and sometimes six four goncourt in england wills. we talked to one woman who waited for years for her child. good evening. we start the programme tonight with a special report on the story of a brave teenager and her family as they fight to navigate the mental health system. molly, who is 16, has spent nearly seven months in a busy general hospital due to a lack of suitable children s mental health services in england. campaigners say hundreds of young people like molly have
constant alarms, no one understands autism or any of my needs. sessions don t happen. but back at home, molly s family say the mental health support she got was patchy. her weight dropped and last october she was sectioned and taken to the general hospital. molly s parents asked us to delay telling her story, hoping she would be home soon, but by this april she was still here. with little else to do, her artwork and thoughts reached across the floor. to keep her safe, agency mental health nurses watched her 2a hours a day. it s a vicious cycle, so the more distressed she gets, the more her behaviour becomes more challenging and the more intense support they get round her, which is more oppressive and more sensory overloading. and do you think that is then adding to her problems, traumatising her? yes, definitely. definitely, being restrained regularly is really, really traumatising. and despite the close supervision she has tried to take her life several times.