A labourer who told police that he would take his own life was found dead less than three hours after he spoke to an NHS mental health worker.
Tomasz Brzoza, 41, called Thames Valley Police in the early hours of March 11 last year, raising concerns about his family and – in one call a few minutes before 3am – claimed he would commit suicide.
His inquest heard that he was called by a staff member from Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, which is responsible for mental health care in the county, at 3am.
It was arranged he would be contacted by the trust’s adult mental health team later in the morning.
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However, his body was discovered in the porch in front of his flat in Sycamore Way, Didcot, at 5.50am. A post-mortem found his cause of death to have been hanging.
In a narrative conclusion, senior coroner Darren Salter said Polish-born Mr Brzoza suffered from mental health problems and also had ‘significant difficulties’ with a neighbour.
“It appears Tomasz Brzoza was suffering from paranoia and a mental health crisis and it is not clear on the evidence if he had the capacity to form an intent to end his life,” the coroner said.
Following the inquest, a spokesman from Oxford Health said the trust had completed an internal review following Mr Brzoza’s death.
He added: “We have reflected at length on the care that we provided and will do so again following the conclusion of the inquest, including how we work effectively with partner agencies.
“This was a tragic incident and we would like to express our sincere condolences to Tomasz’s family, and those who knew him, for their loss. We know that Tomasz was a much-loved son, brother and uncle.”
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Thames Valley Police said it had been reviewing the contact between Mr Brzoza and the force and its ‘actions in sharing information with health services’.
A spokeswoman said: “We have made this information available to the coroner who is currently reviewing the matter. We await the coroner’s report on their view of our actions.
“Our thoughts are with Mr Brzoza and his family at this time.”
For support with mental health, contact the Samaritans on 116 123 or visit www.samaritans.org. In a mental health crisis you should contact the emergency services by calling 999 or call 111 for the 24/7 Mental Health Helpline.
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