Lance
Content Warning: These stories are about violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation and may include references to suicide or self-harming behaviours. They may contain graphic descriptions and strong language and may be distressing. Some narratives may be about First Nations people who have passed away. If you need support, please see Contact & support.
‘I have been treated differently as a result of my disability. I find that not everybody, but most people, when they hear the word disability it’s like they look at you differently, like there is something wrong with you.’
Lance is in his 40s and lives with severe anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Several years ago, Lance was admitted to a hospital psychiatric ward.
‘I had a mental breakdown,’ he told the Royal Commission.
Lance spent several weeks in hospital and a medical recovery centre before being discharged.
‘When I left, they told me that if I was still having trouble in three months’ time that I could come back.’
However, a few months later when his doctor advised he return to the centre, the centre said ‘No’.
‘The official reason given was because … they felt that I would become reliant on the system.’
Lance complained and ‘they finally gave [him] access a second time into the facility’.
But a few days after the centre admitted Lance, management told him to leave.
‘They told me that I had to leave because a staff member felt unsafe. And I had no idea why, but I did what I was told. I packed up the room, I cleaned up the room and then I left.’
Lance said that the next day, the centre contacted his mum and told her Lance had ‘threatened to kill a staff member’.
Lance denied this. Lance’s support worker was so concerned he called the centre to find out what happened.
‘They told him on the phone that the reason I was told to leave was because I threatened to kill two staff members … I’ve never threatened to hurt anybody. Really, I’m not that kind of person. And I just don’t know why they would come up with that.’
Lance said despite his protests, the false allegations remain on his file.
‘I’m classified as dangerous, and I’ve been denied medical treatment. I’ve tried ever since then to try and get the legal ways and every different way I possibly can, to try and get these off my record.’
Lance said he learnt later that someone accused him of putting a threatening note on a car.
‘On the day that they said I did it, I was with my support worker, and he said, “Yeah, I can prove that I was with him at the day and the time” … but they’re still accusing me of doing it.’
Lance said when he accessed his medical records, sections were redacted.
‘It’s kind of hard for me worrying that if my disability plays up again or if, say, I have another mental breakdown or that sort of thing, I’ve got to worry that I’ve got nowhere to go.’
Disclaimer: This is the story of a person who shared their personal experience with the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability through a submission or private session. The names in this story are pseudonyms. The person who shared this experience was not a witness and their account is not evidence. They did not take an oath or affirmation before providing the story. Nothing in this story constitutes a finding of the Royal Commission. Any views expressed are those of the person who shared their experience, not of the Royal Commission.