‘Vulnerable’ woman died on bench in Ashford town centre after going missing from Littlebrook Hospital in Dartford

A “vulnerable” woman who went missing from a mental health hospital tragically died on a bench later that day, an inquest has heard.Chelsea Louise Malthouse had been an inpatient at Littlebrook Hospital in Dartford but absconded after being let out into the grounds to have a cigarette.Chelsea Louise Malthouse has been described as a "funny and lively ray of sunshine" by her family. Picture: John MalthouseThat evening, she was found unresponsive by members of the public, slumped over the edge of a bench, 40 miles away in Ashford town centre.The 30-year-old was taken to the William Harvey Hospital, but was pronounced dead shortly after, with the misuse of a synthetic cannabinoid considered a contributing factor.The first day of an inquest into her death was held at Oakwood House in Maidstone yesterday.A jury - consisting of four women and seven men - is being asked to reach a conclusion on Chelsea’s death, as she died while under state detention.They heard how it was not the first time she had absconded from the hospital - and that her family had raised concerns she “was not safe and remained very vulnerable”.Chelsea Malthouse died in Ashford town centre on January 18, 2024. Picture: John MalthouseA report by the trust which runs the hospital also concluded she should have been offered “greater support”.A psychiatrist from the Cherry Wood Ward at Littlebrook, Dr Oghenetejiri Obire, gave evidence yesterday and described the mental health issues Chelsea battled with.He told the inquest: “Miss Malthouse had diagnoses of paranoid schizophrenia, emotionally unstable personality disorder and psychoactive substance misuse.“Emotionally unstable personality disorder means having rapid extremes of emotions.“It happens in very short intervals, and sufferers have difficulty controlling emotions.“She presented wth psychotic symptoms with beliefs of being sexually assaulted and having delivered babies or being pregnant.“She also had beliefs of being rich and powerful.“She had non-compliance with taking her psychotic medication.”Dr Obire said Chelsea had been detained seven times under the Mental Health Act since 2015.Her most recent admission was in March 2023, when she self-presented to the William Harvey and was then transferred to Littlebrook.Littlebrook Hospital in Dartford. .Picture: Steve CrispeShe stayed there and was deemed fit to be discharged by September 2023.However, delays in sorting an appropriate “safe discharge plan” meant she was still on the Cherry Wood Ward in January 2024.Dr Obire explained: “It’s very restrictive on the ward.“She didn't want to stay anymore and was always looking forward to being discharged.“We reassured her that we just needed to find a safe place for her.”Chelsea, described by her family as a “funny and lively ray of sunshine”, was allowed to leave the hospital for 15 minutes, four times a day. This right, which requires doctors’ authorisation, comes under section 17 of the Mental Health Act.Her leave was used to have a cigarette within the facility’s grounds.But on January 18, 2024, Chelsea did not return from her break.The doctor recalled: “I saw her a few days before the 18th.“She was expressing so much frustration at being on the ward.Ashford High Street was taped off by police“Unofficially, I saw her on the 18th. It was just a brief hello.“She asked when she was being discharged, and I explained it was when she had a pathway.“Later that day, I was made aware she had gone. I don’t remember what time it was.”Chelsea was found unresponsive on the bench in Lower High Street, Ashford, by members of the public at 11.20pm that evening.The inquest heard of other occasions when Chelsea had absconded.On December 5, 2023, she was brought back to the ward by two police officers at 3.15am, having left two days earlier, and appeared drunk. She would not agree to being searched.Police said she mentioned being in Crayford, near Dartford, in the company of random men who drugged her.On December 21, she went AWOL again. She refused a urine sample and staff said she was a bit wobbly in her movements. Chelsea put this down to having walked for two days.In total and across different hospitals, she absconded seven times.A statement from Chelsea’s family was read out by Coroner Katrina Hepburn on Monday, citing the concerns they had with Littlebrook Hospital.Floral tributes were left in Ashford's Lower High StreetIt was written by the young woman’s aunt, Sally-Ann Perkins, who cared for her from birth.She said: “The staff never contacted me to gather information.“I raised concerns that she was not safe and remained very vulnerable.“Ultimately, we were never given a chance to speak and should have been listened to.“When Chelsea absconded, I found out from the police, not the hospital.“Chelsea once went missing for four days.“I understand it was Chelsea’s wish not to tell me, but my concern was that Chelsea’s health was deteriorating.”Ms Perkins said she called the hospital countless times and expressed frustrations at not being told Chelsea’s medical conditions, including her schizophrenia diagnosis.A report into Chelsea’s death by the Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust (KMPT), which runs Littlebrook, said: “It has been concluded that greater support should have been offered to the patient regarding substance use support while she was on the ward.“There is currently a gap in provision in this area for inpatients.Ashford High Street and Bank Street was cordoned off by police“The patient may have benefited from the support of inreach substance misuse specialists during her admission.”Asked if he agreed that there were missed opportunities in giving Chelsea this support, Dr Obire said: “Yes.”Two days before the tragedy, Chelsea, in a meeting with doctors, presented with flurried psychotic beliefs, including claims her dad was Saddam Hussein and she had been brought back to life 58 times. She also said other patients were being cruel to her, and she wanted to leave the ward.Following the meeting, it was also marked in her notes that she had a high risk of absconding.Her death was originally deemed unexplained by police, but is not being treated as suspicious.Her medical cause of death was first ruled as an aspiration of stomach contents, but misuse of a synthetic cannabinoid called MDMB-4en-PINACA was later added.Most of Ashford town centre - between the junctions for Bank Street and Station Road - was cordoned off and remained so for much of the following day as officers carried out their investigation.Floral tributes were left under a tree by the benches outside Sports Direct in the town centre in memory of her.Chelsea’s brother, John Malthouse, previously paid tribute to his sister in a GoFundMe page set up to pay for her funeral.In it, he described her as a “funny and lively ray of sunshine”, adding: “I have no words right now at all. I am beyond devastated.”A KMPT spokesperson told KentOnline: “We extend our heartfelt condolences to Chelsea’s family and loved ones.”The inquest is set to continue this week and conclude next Tuesday.

A “vulnerable” woman who went missing from a mental health hospital tragically died on a bench later that day, an inquest has heard. Chelsea Louise Malthouse had been an inpatient at Littlebrook Hospital in Dartford but absconded after being let out into the grounds to have a cigarette. That evening, she was found unresponsive by members of the public, slumped over the edge of a bench, 40 miles away in Ashford town centre.

The 30-year-old was taken to the William Harvey Hospital, but was pronounced dead shortly after, with the misuse of a synthetic cannabinoid considered a contributing factor. The first day of an inquest into her death was held at Oakwood House in Maidstone yesterday. A jury - consisting of four women and seven men - is being asked to reach a conclusion on Chelsea’s death, as she died while under state detention.

They heard how it was not the first time she had absconded from the hospital - and that her family had raised concerns she “was not safe and remained very vulnerable”. A report by the trust which runs the hospital also concluded she should have been offered “greater support”. A psychiatrist from the Cherry Wood Ward at Littlebrook, Dr Oghenetejiri Obire, gave evidence yesterday and described the mental health issues Chelsea battled with.

He told the inquest: “Miss Malthouse had diagnoses of paranoid schizophrenia, emotionally unstable personality disorder and psychoactive substance misuse. “Emotionally unstable personality disorder means having rapid extremes of emotions. “It happens in very short intervals, and sufferers have difficulty controlling emotions.

“She presented wth psychotic symptoms with beliefs of being sexually assaulted and having delivered babies or being pregnant. “She also had beliefs of being rich and powerful. “She had non-compliance with taking her psychotic medication.

” Dr Obire said Chelsea had been detained seven times under the Mental Health Act since 2015. Her most recent admission was in March 2023, when she self-presented to the William Harvey and was then transferred to Littlebrook. She stayed there and was deemed fit to be discharged by September 2023.

However, delays in sorting an appropriate “safe discharge plan” meant she was still on the Cherry Wood Ward in January 2024. Dr Obire explained: “It’s very restrictive on the ward. “She didn't want to stay anymore and was always looking forward to being discharged.

“We reassured her that we just needed to find a safe place for her.” Chelsea, described by her family as a “funny and lively ray of sunshine”, was allowed to leave the hospital for 15 minutes, four times a day. This right, which requires doctors’ authorisation, comes under section 17 of the Mental Health Act.

Her leave was used to have a cigarette within the facility’s grounds. But on January 18, 2024, Chelsea did not return from her break. The doctor recalled: “I saw her a few days before the 18th.

“She was expressing so much frustration at being on the ward. “Unofficially, I saw her on the 18th. It was just a brief hello.

“She asked when she was being discharged, and I explained it was when she had a pathway. “Later that day, I was made aware she had gone. I don’t remember what time it was.

” Chelsea was found unresponsive on the bench in Lower High Street, Ashford , by members of the public at 11.20pm that evening. The inquest heard of other occasions when Chelsea had absconded.

On December 5, 2023, she was brought back to the ward by two police officers at 3.15am, having left two days earlier, and appeared drunk. She would not agree to being searched.

Police said she mentioned being in Crayford, near Dartford, in the company of random men who drugged her. On December 21, she went AWOL again. She refused a urine sample and staff said she was a bit wobbly in her movements.

Chelsea put this down to having walked for two days. In total and across different hospitals, she absconded seven times. A statement from Chelsea’s family was read out by Coroner Katrina Hepburn on Monday, citing the concerns they had with Littlebrook Hospital.

It was written by the young woman’s aunt, Sally-Ann Perkins, who cared for her from birth. She said: “The staff never contacted me to gather information. “I raised concerns that she was not safe and remained very vulnerable.

“Ultimately, we were never given a chance to speak and should have been listened to. “When Chelsea absconded, I found out from the police, not the hospital. “Chelsea once went missing for four days.

“I understand it was Chelsea’s wish not to tell me, but my concern was that Chelsea’s health was deteriorating.” Ms Perkins said she called the hospital countless times and expressed frustrations at not being told Chelsea’s medical conditions, including her schizophrenia diagnosis. A report into Chelsea’s death by the Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust (KMPT), which runs Littlebrook, said: “It has been concluded that greater support should have been offered to the patient regarding substance use support while she was on the ward.

“There is currently a gap in provision in this area for inpatients. “The patient may have benefited from the support of inreach substance misuse specialists during her admission.” Asked if he agreed that there were missed opportunities in giving Chelsea this support, Dr Obire said: “Yes.

” Two days before the tragedy, Chelsea, in a meeting with doctors, presented with flurried psychotic beliefs, including claims her dad was Saddam Hussein and she had been brought back to life 58 times. She also said other patients were being cruel to her, and she wanted to leave the ward. Following the meeting, it was also marked in her notes that she had a high risk of absconding.

Her death was originally deemed unexplained by police, but is not being treated as suspicious. Her medical cause of death was first ruled as an aspiration of stomach contents, but misuse of a synthetic cannabinoid called MDMB-4en-PINACA was later added. Most of Ashford town centre - between the junctions for Bank Street and Station Road - was cordoned off and remained so for much of the following day as officers carried out their investigation.

Floral tributes were left under a tree by the benches outside Sports Direct in the town centre in memory of her. Chelsea’s brother, John Malthouse, previously paid tribute to his sister in a GoFundMe page set up to pay for her funeral. In it, he described her as a “funny and lively ray of sunshine”, adding: “I have no words right now at all.

I am beyond devastated.” A KMPT spokesperson told KentOnline: “We extend our heartfelt condolences to Chelsea’s family and loved ones.” The inquest is set to continue this week and conclude next Tuesday.

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