A deaf TikTok star, who died after taking poison, told a mental health service about a “pro-choice suicide forum” and lethal chemicals that she had bought online a month before her death, an inquest has heard.
Imogen Nunn took a poisonous substance and died in Brighton on New Year’s Day 2023.
The 25-year-old raised awareness of hearing and mental health issues on her social media accounts which attracted more than 780,000 followers.
An inquest into her death was told today (Monday 17 March) that Ms Nunn was “failed” by services meant to help her, according to a statement by her mother Louise Sutherland.
The inquest, in Horsham, was told that Ms Nunn, referred to as “Immy” in court, contacted her support worker at the deaf adult community team (DACT) at South West London and St George’s NHS Trust on Wednesday 23 November 2022.
She told them that she had “bought something online that she planned to take to end her life” and made reference to a “pro-choice suicide forum”.
In a statement read to the inquest, Thomas Beamont, representing Ms Sutherland and Immy’s father Ray Nunn, said: “Ray and I believe that Immy felt hopeless and let down by the time of her death and that she was failed.
“Immy didn’t want to die but she was exhausted from fighting desperately for the help she needed.”
Ms Sutherland told the court that her daughter, who was born “profoundly deaf”, had mental health difficulties from age 14.
In the years that followed, she made several attempts on her life and was detained under the Mental Health Act in 2018.
During her time in hospital, Ms Nunn began sharing her experiences on social media posts. Ms Sutherland said: “She found success on TikTok where she established over 800,000 followers, a platform she used to share her experiences and struggles with mental health and the challenges she faced as a deaf person.
“In her TikTok videos, Immy would put a positive spin on her experiences. We thought it was a good outlet for her, helping her to build up her self-esteem which had almost completely depleted after missing out on so much of her teenage life.”
On Wednesday 15 September 2021, after spending nearly four years as an inpatient in Springfield Hospital’s ward for deaf adults in south west London, Ms Nunn was discharged and started living in a flat in Brighton, with the support of community mental health teams.
But the inquest was told that by July 2022 her mental health began deteriorating again and she stopped engaging with mental health professionals.
The court was told that she purchased lethal chemicals online on Monday 14 November and received the parcel at home on Monday 21 November.
She contacted Carmen Jones, her allocated worker at DACT, on Wednesday 23 November complaining that she had suicidal thoughts.
This prompted Sussex Police to conduct a welfare check but no British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter attended and Ms Nunn did not see mental health professionals “for at least several weeks afterwards”, the coroner heard.
On Thursday 29 December, after spending Christmas with her parents, Ms Nunn harmed herself and went to the accident and emergency (A&E) department at the Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton, with a wound on her arm.
The inquest was told that she texted her care co-ordinator, Ray McCullagh, at Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, saying: “I’m simply having the worst few months and I think I need to be admitted to a ward with sign language.
“I cannot look after myself any more. I can easily go into the last resort and I don’t want to.”
Despite this, Ms Nunn was left alone in the emergency room and left before being seen by the hospital mental health team, the inquest was told.On Friday 30 December, Ms Nunn told her psychologist that she “did not feel safe” and had “a plan to kill herself” by drinking poison.
She told her psychologist that she did not have any poison and agreed to be admitted into a mental health crisis facility “to keep herself safe”, the inquest heard.
But Mr McCullagh did not meet her that day as planned and her admission never happened, the court was told.
In her statement, Ms Sutherland added: “We believe that Immy’s death was avoidable and that had appropriate actions been taken in response to the numerous times Immy contacted professionals she trusted, asking for help, she would still be alive today.”
Ms Sutherland added: “She was the most beautiful, kind, gentle and loving daughter. Our whole world is broken by her death.”
Mr Beamont also read a statement on behalf of Ms Nunn’s father Ray, saying: “If there was a word for us to describe her, it would be ‘rainbow’. She had an aura that was just so special.
“If you had the pleasure to meet Immy, you would have met the most gentle, kind and genuine young lady – someone filled only with love who cared deeply for her family.”
Coroner Penelope Schofield said that the inquest would look at “the care and treatment of Imogen from Wednesday 15 September 2022 … including the assessment and welfare check by the police on Wednesday 23 November 2022”.
She said that the way in which Ms Nunn obtained the poison would not form part of the inquest because of an ongoing police investigation.
It comes as Canadian chef Kenneth Law is facing a murder trial in his home country for allegedly supplying poisonous chemicals to people around the world who have ended their lives.
He has been linked to dozens of suicides in Britain, according to the National Crime Agency.
This was a sad tale to read. Mental Health doesn’t belong in A&E and many patients find it a triggering environment. It highlights the need for better services away from the hospital, something I think everyone in the healthcare profession already knows.
Unfortunately, she won’t be the last person who ends up completing suicide when intervention could have happened. It is going to be hard for those who are left behind. And bit of a personal reflection for me to try to be kind to everyone I meet, as you don’t know what they are going through.