Release him!

Published: 28 OCTOBER, 2010

• I SUPPORT Camden residents who urge medical authorities to release Tom Costello, a truly free spirit, from his incarceration in a privatised mental institution in Northampton. 

Whatever happened to care in the community? How can we get the Prime Minister’s concept of the Big Society to work in Tom’s case?

Tom should be returned to the home in Medburn Street, Somers Town, where he lived for the past 40 years, and where I and other neighbours could provide the friendly, familiar help that Tom requires. In addition, minimal support from a local visiting mental health worker and telephone numbers which we could use in emergencies would be a far cheaper and more humane way of helping Tom than the regime of heavily drugged incarceration which he is suffering at present, and which is only making his position worse.

I first knew Tom in 1949 when we met as first-form students at Medburn Street, now South Camden Community School. I met him again in 1976 when we became neighbours. He was then regularly running marathons during vacations from his work with British Rail. Tom was widely respected as a Good Samaritan, ready to help neighbours in need, or causes for the good of his local community. He later worked for Camden Council as a receptionist at the Crowndale Centre, for which he campaigned that it be converted from a post office to a health centre and other community amenities. This was one of many campaigns, including the listing of late Georgian blocks in Somers Town to prevent their demolition, in which Tom took part.

Due to Tom’s running, a retina became detached in one of his eyes. The operation for this was not successful and this confirmed Tom’s long-standing dread of hospitals. I accompanied Tom to his GP once, when he revealed that this fear was causing him to miss hospital appointments. This dread of hospital treatment has carried over into Tom’s recent aversion to medical institutions. That is why I and others advocate that treatment should be tailored within Tom’s community so that he will be restored to comparative health among friendly faces.

Tom’s present predicament highlights the awesome prospect facing any resident with a degree of mental health problems. If Tom receives the personalised care he needs, we will have successfully campaigned for him as he so often did for others.

LEN BROOKS
Medburn Street NW1