Lismore Base Hospital horror: ‘I wasn’t told how mum died’

MIRIAM Merten died under the care of hospital staff. Her daughter and family were never told the horrible truth of how she died from brain injuries after being dumped naked and drugged in a tiny seclusion room.

• Why was mum Miriam Merten left to die?
• Calls for inquiry after mum of two left to die in hospital corridors

THE family of a mental health patient who died from brain injuries after being dumped naked and drugged in a tiny seclusion room were never told the horrible truth about her hospital death.

In an exclusive interview with The Daily Telegraph, the daughter of Miriam Merten has revealed that she was only ever told by Lismore Base Hospital that her mother had fallen in the shower.

There was no mention of her being dumped prior to that in a locked room naked and drugged, then held there for hours without food or water.

Corina Merten’s mother Miriam died in Lismore Base Hospital. Her death is now the subject of a coronial inquest. Picture: Luke Marsden

The hospital also didn’t tell Corina Merten that her mum hit her head at least 20 times while in seclusion, or that the staff who were meant to be caring for her would later be sacked.

The 20-year-old, who wants to be a youth worker, said she was “shocked” when contacted by The Daily Telegraph and told the full story ­behind her mother’s death on June 3 in 2014.

Mental health patient Miriam Merten staggering up and down the hospital corridor for more than hour covered in faeces and blood while the two nurses on duty mopped the floor.

The hospital also didn’t tell Corina that her mum hit her head at least 20 times.

“The staff of Lismore Base Hospital never told me the truth of the situation,” she said.

“I, and the rest of my family, were told she fell — assuming once, not over 20 times — in the shower.

“I’m unsure if this was intentional or simply misinformation. It is incredibly frustrating and disheartening.”

The hospital failed to tell the mum of two’s children she fell at least 20 times while in care.

Miriam was admitted to Lismore Base Hospital in 2014 due to concerns over her mental health.

Corina said she was “left out” of inquiries into the incident to the point where she was “unsure where or when” they were and if there was “even an outcome”.

“It is quite clear to me that this was intentional,” she told The Daily Telegraph.

The Casino resident said her mother was “a good person despite her illness”.

Corina was taken into the care of other family members at age three, but she said she would see her mum on special occasions such as birthdays, Christmas and Mother’s Day.

Corina Merten and mum Miriam. Corina said her mother was a “good person, despite her illness”.

“Miriam never had a problem with the fact that I was (with other family members),” she said. “She had a good relationship with (them).

“I think she clearly understood she couldn’t adequately look after me and maintain her mental health.”

Corina, who supported The Daily Telegraph seeking the hospital CCTV footage exposing her mother’s treatment, said she wanted the story to be told so that politicians would finally commit more resources to helping mental health patients — particularly in regional NSW.

“She is not the first and definitely won’t be the last mentally ill person let down by the system,” she said.

Lismore Base Hospital has not responded to questions. Picture: Luke Marsden

“Funding cuts and staff shortages has always been a massive part of the community services industry.”

The Daily Telegraph specifically asked the Northern NSW Local Health District what ­efforts were made to inform the family of Ms Merten about how she died and the mistakes made.

Our questions were ­ignored.