"I am angry. He is my son. This is a life altering event"

Derry man, Stephen Smith, was taken to Maghaberry Prison in the first week of April this year.

His medication for seizures and opium addiction were denied to him and Stephen proceeded to engrave 'HELP' with a sharp object into his abdomen and attempted to take his own life.

Stephen is 26 years old and now has permanent brain damage. His mother Sarah says she wants change in the prison service, she wants the stigma of addiction to be tackled and she wants more services to be provided so no other family has to deal with such a tragedy.

Stephen has been battling with addiction for the last decade and has been convicted of crimes since his teens. However, his mother said there was an evident lack of support available when Stephen tried to reach out.

Speaking to Derry Now, Sarah said: "There is a severe lack of services for mental health and addiction, there is a stigma attached. That stigma needs to be addressed. 

"My son, Stephen, has been battling with addiction for the last nine or ten years. It led to him falling away from the family, falling into a negative circle and becoming more dependent on drugs. We tried to seek help for him but it didn't go that way.

"Earlier this year, Stephen was taken to Maghaberry Prison. When he went there he was put through a scanner. It is a new device that has been put in the prisons, and rightly so, to detect any drugs that prisoners may have on them internally. 

"Stephen was put through the scanner. They assumed he had drugs inside him so they put him into the block. 

"The block is 24/7 in a 4x4 cell with a mattress, a toilet and a bible; there is no contact and your dinner is slid into you. 

"Whilst he was in the block, they withheld his medication. He is on medication for seizures and due to his opium addiction, he is also prescribed methadone.

"I was speaking to the nursing staff there and they said they are within their right to withhold inmate's medication. 

"Stephen was in there without his medication, I do not know to what degree. They told me that their justification for doing this was because they didn't want his medication to react with whatever was inside him. Methadone is a very dependent medication and can cause adverse side effects. It can be fatal if taken away.

"I can only imagine my son was seriously distressed as he is really dependent on it, his mental health is also very poor. To my knowledge, he had a seizure and was taken to hospital only to be returned to the prison and placed back in the block. Because of this, my son ended up in intensive care."

Stephen engraved the word 'HELP' on his abdomen and harmed himself. The family and Sarah do not know how Stephen got access to a sharp object as he was supposed to be under supervision and monitored every half hour. On the 10th of April, Stephen attempted to take his own life in his cell. 

Sarah continued: "I don't know how this happened. We don't have answers as it is under investigation.

"Stephen was found and had to be resuscitated. We didn't know at the time but he ended up with oxygen deprivation to the brain."

Stephen spent five weeks in the ICU and was in a critical condition. While he was unconscious, he vomited and it went into his lungs. Due to aspiration, Stephen then suffered double pneumonia, was placed in an induced coma and put on life support, as his family watched on, with no knowledge if he would recover or not.

Fortunately, Stephen started to get better. Doctors performed an MRI and it revealed Stephen has multiple brain injuries. 

Sarah said: "We didn't know what he would be like as he was still mildly sedated at this stage.

"We are nine weeks into it now. Stephen has been released from the Royal and is in Musgrave now for brain injuries. 

"He is walking and talking a wee bit but he has a bad stutter, he is hard to understand and he is prone to falls. He's very confused and his memory is appalling. 

"The professionals do not know how much that will improve but hopefully with the rehabilitation he will."

Sarah explained that when the incident happened, Maghaberry Prison didn't make her aware of Stephen's condition until the next day, "I found out from a priest around 24 hours later," Sarah explained.

"I want to emphasise the lack of care Stephen received, and other prisoners too. They have committed crimes and they deserve the punishment of prison but they do not deserve to be treated like dogs; they still have their human rights.

"Stephen was really let down. There has to be change. No other family should have to deal with this. 

"This could have been avoided. I am a mother and a nurse and a human being and the very fact that Stephen was taken off his medication; it should never have happened in the first place. 

"Then, when he had a seizure, he should have been monitored closely. Then when he self harmed, I can only imagine what he was going through in that cell on his own and it is obvious he was being ignored. It should have escalated to constant supervision. He didn't get that. 

"This machine has also apparently not been used properly. Stephen was X-rayed for the alleged drugs and nothing was found. I am not saying he was wrongly accused but there has been additional training provided since for the use of the machine. 

"There has also been an influx of prisoners at the prison. They went from 800 inmates to 1200 inmates very suddenly; they don't have the staff to provide the right care.

"I am angry. He is my son. This is a life altering event. He now needs around the clock care. 

"If there wasn't this stigma in society of addicts and if help and support was truly accessible, my son could have possibly conquered his addiction years ago which would have avoided jail term and in turn his attempt to end his own life. 

"Addiction is frowned upon, as if they are the lesser person. When in reality it is an illness and should be treated accordingly. 

"The damage is done, his life will never be the same. There is a serious lack of duty of care and this shouldn't be allowed to continue. 

"Addiction can take anyone at any time, and for a family who have experienced it, we know the wreckage that comes along with it. 

"We have already lost four of our close family to suicide, which stemmed from addiction and bad mental health. When will it end?

"Addiction has such a stigma in society. It is not taken seriously. Neither is mental health. It has to be so that this doesn't happen again."

A Prison Service spokesperson said that the safety of vulnerable people "is always paramount."

The spokesperson said: “While it would not be appropriate to comment on individual prisoners, if a serious adverse incident takes place the Prison Service will inform the Prisoner Ombudsman who will carry out an investigation into the circumstances of the incident.

“The prison service supports many challenging and vulnerable people and their safety, and that of our staff and partner organisations, is always paramount."

South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust is responsible for medication and healthcare in their prisons.

A spokesperson for The South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust said: "The Trust can’t comment on individual cases, in order to respect patient confidentiality.

"The Trust is responsible for the delivery of healthcare services for all people in prison.

"Everyone is offered a healthcare assessment and appropriate treatment, based on their healthcare needs and continue to be cared for by our staff."

The Prisoner Ombudsman is currently investigating Stephen's case.