Photo of Brian Henley
Update on 7/27/2021
Here is a recording of a voicemail left by Brian on the phone of Michele Diamond, when Brian learned that his Shield alert was successful and that he would be discharged
MFI has confirmed that Brian was discharged. You can listen to Update on 7/14/21. Great news! The forced shocking of Brian Henley has been suspended! Thank you for writing letters, making phone calls, and sending emails! Your actions made a difference! Michelle will be issuing a statement soon letting you know when we can expect Brian to be discharged.
Update to Alert 7/8/2021 (Previous updates from 7/1/2021, 6/25/2021, and prior have been removed for brevity)
Note: Updates on 7/8/2021 compliments of Michele Diamond, Patient Advocate for US Civil and Human Rights who agreed to serve as the the volunteer Shield campaign manager for Brian Henley.
After the reading Michele’s updates below, MFI recommends taking specific action to stop the shocking, by force, of Brian Henley today. To view recommended actions, scroll down to
“ACTIONS YOU CAN TAKE TODAY TO STOP THE FORCED SHOCK OF BRIAN HENLEY”
Wondering what to say when taking action? View examples of other people’s letters/emails/complaints by scrolling down to “EXAMPLES OF ACTIONS TAKEN ON BEHALF OF BRIAN HENLEY”
Any questions or comments about this campaign? Post them our SHIELD FEED HERE located at the very bottom of this PAGE You should also post what actions you took on the feed This allows us to archive your actions and the responses you receive.
UPDATES
1) Response and acknowledgment from the Florida Governor’s office received. They have forwarded the information to the 2 appropriate agencies for follow-up. View letter from Inspector General HERE but do not share (Redactions are solely to protect the personal information of Shield member who filed the complaint) and discretion is requested so as not to derail the investigation which may include an unannounced visit.
2) Brian was subjected, by force, to his 10th ECT but said 9th last night on Michele’s voicemail. (According to Michelle the 10th because Friday would have been 12 if there wasn’t a holiday.) His calls have shortened in length since Monday 7/5. No calls to Michele from Monday evening to Wednesday evening when he did leave a message. (I thought due to the hurricane in Florida) but no answer to the hospital phones Monday evening and Tuesday evening.
(He is forgetting things, mixing up his words, he can’t find some words, and has been repeating himself since the ECT treatments began.) But, he still sounds very clear.
3) A passcode was put onto all of Brain’s incoming calls as of Tuesday 6/29 without his awareness. He was informed by me on Wed. 6/30 after probing evening staff for information and his suspicions were true that they were blocking his calls. Shield members: Please remember that this is a violation of patient rights and please include this in your letters/complaints/calls/emails
4) A 3-way conference call took place with Dr. Lim the Administrator that oversees Psych Dept. at UF Health Shands and the Pt. Safety department last week although they could not elaborate on anything whatsoever nor talk about anything regarding Brian. I responded that I did not know why the call took place then and that the call was then unsuccessful and there has been no resolution to the issues of concern. They were both questioned why there was a passcode calling into Brain without his awareness, placed on his communications on Tuesday 6/29 the day after they received the Complaint and Grievance. It was made clear during the call that this is a clear Patient Rights violation by restricting his phone calls. Dr. Lim had no further comments. But the call was still a success and the response was very shocking to receive one at all.
4) Emails and calls to MHA – Mental Health Association have all been ignored after 5 attempts. The Ombudsman refuses to do her job of investigating with the hospital. If someone wants to continue to file complaints through their website this would be helpful because its documented through the website messages. Walton County MHA. (see directions below for contacting this agency)
5) A request for a Social Worker to meet with Brian happened on Monday 7/5 by a message left for Pt. Experience at Shands. I asked if they can talk to Brian regarding his housing situation and asked them to look into a housing subsidy for him. He would only pay 30% of his income towards rent, not his whole check. The government has released billions or trillions of dollars toward housing and rental assistance just last month to states. Brain has been entitled to housing assistance and I am in agreement with Brain that the Assisted Living situation is not a healthy place for him to live and the treatment has not been a success according to Brain.
6) Multiple calls have been placed out to Risk Management as he is the contact person regarding all these matters. I have STRONGLY voiced our opinion and the facts of this harm and injustice, stating that “we” speak to him daily and it’s obvious that the guardian does not care about his health (his guardian had Zero contact with him for the first 3 weeks) She hasn’t heard what we hear daily nor had she been able to observe his deterioration in Brian’s health. It was communicated that all of these concerns will be addressed although no response can really be made. The last conversation happened with the point of contact Friday 7/2.
7) Morgan and Morgan attorney’s (The largest law firm in the world) took Brian’s intake the other day from me and I just gave them his number at the East Wing at the nurses station to speak with him directly. They need to speak with him directly now. I’m sure this is going to ruffle some more feathers. For those who pray, please pray consistently for Brian and that Justice is served, he goes home, gets well and if the legal case can move forward, it will turn out for his benefit and benefit those that come after him.
8) I was just told by Ann Fuller (mother of psychiatric survivor Charles Helmer) that they started Brian on a new drug. I haven’t spoken to him yet but maybe they have finally prescribed him the Gabapentin he has been asking for. Just maybe they are actually giving the medical attention he should have had from day 1. Still no x-ray of his shoulder from the fall before the ER trip.
9) Brain has communicated all along that he has a heart condition which could possibly be deadly for him to be undergoing these procedures with the risk of heart complications as a major side effect.
An update will follow on 7/15 Michele Diamond
ACTIONS YOU CAN TAKE TODAY
Contact the Doc Who is Shocking Brian Henley by Force:
Dr. Richard Holbert MD
Background of Dr. Holbert HERE
Call him at his first workplace
352-265-4357
Send emails to Dr. Holbert at his university workplace l:
Write to him at one or more of his following personal email addresses
Write formal letters:
Dr. Richard Holbert MD
UF Health Psychiatric Hospital
4101 NW 89th Blvd
Gainesville, FL 32606
Contact CEO of Health Shands, the network of hospitals that is shocking Brian:
Write: Edward Jimenez
Call: Edward Jimenez
(352) 733-1500
Contact the ombudsman
According to Frank Blankenship, the ombudsman in Florida is associated with Mental Health America (the organization that uses a liberty bell as their symbol) Let them know that Brian Henley is being subjected by force to shock, euphemistically known as ‘ECT’ or ‘electro-convulsive therapy’ a ‘treatment’ that is extremely controversial and known to be harmful, causing permanent brain damage
http://www.mhaow.org/programs/ombudsman.html
Brian is also at risk of being remanded to NE Florida State Hospital close to Jacksonville, far away from his support system, according to Frank Blankenship, a friend of Brian. Contact Brian’s social worker to demand other options for Brian, such as those suggested above.
This is the first time you heard about the Shield Alert of Brian Henley?
Brian is young by many people’s standards, at 44, he was living in an assisted living facility near Orlando for years, after an episode in which he tried to harm himself. When he attempted to elope from this unhealthy living environment with the assistance of a friend, he was apprehended and taken by force Shand’s Vista, University of Florida teaching hospital where is he has been subjected to heavy drugging and shock torture AGAINST HIS EXPRESSED CONSENT for the past three weeks. His friend Frank, thinks that they may move him to Florida State Hospital. This is why your actions today are so important!
Please demand that the hospital stop shocking Brian immediately. Please demand that he be released to a non -restrictive environment where he can heal from psychiatric harm, including all forced (court-ordered) drugging which he finds harmful and ineffective. Please demand that he receive the support he needs to live independently in his community including appropriate medical treatment for a heart condition (that may be iatrogenic; related to years of forced psychiatric drugging).
A more detailed history of Brian Henley can be found HERE
Brian activated his Shield protection about ten years ago. You can read the past Shield alert HERE
Please write to the ombudsman below and let them know that Brian Henley is being subjected by force to shock, euphemistically known as ‘ECT’ or ‘electro-convulsive therapy’ a ‘treatment’ that is extremely controversial and known to be harmful, causing permanent brain damage
EXAMPLES OF ACTIONS TAKEN ON BEHALF OF BRIAN HENLEY
Letter by Michele Diamond to Governor click HERE
Letter by Maeghan Graef to CEO of Shands hospital where Brian is being shocked click HERE
Take action today and post YOUR ACTIONS on MFI’s Shield feed Click HERE
Here is a letter to the CEO of Shands authored by MinFreedom Shield member Judith Shalitt who gave me permission to post it.
To: jimedw@shands.ufl.edu
Cc: mhaow@mhaow.org
Subject: Brian Henley—Stop ECT
Dear Mr Jimenez:
As Chief Executive Officer you have the power to step in and
• Stop illegal ECT on Mr Henley
• Restore his phone calls
• Assign a therapist trained in behavioral therapy, which Mr Henley requests
• See that a social worker helps him find subsidized housing and supports.
ECT is controversial. Even it’s strongest proponents now admit that ECT routinely causes substantial permanent memory deficits (H.A Sackheim, 2007). But it is still legal—for those who give informed consent.
Mr Henley has repeatedly and consistently refused consent to ECT. He has pointed out that ECT is particularly dangerous to him because of his heart condition.
Mr Henley requests cognitive behavioral therapy, a proven treatment. No chance of permanent physical damage from that.
Please step in now and see that Mr Henley receives the high quality of care you as head of a university-affiliated teaching hospital surely want him to have. Remind your staff that high-quality care is collaborative—not coerced. And that there is no excuse for abrogating patients’ rights.
Your help will be greatly appreciated.
Sincerely, Judith Shalitt
I LOVE this letter Judith.
Thank you for your involvement! I cannot believe he has not seen a Social Worker all this time. This is common practice in the hospital. I requested it in writing on Monday morning.
Michele
Dear Sarah and Michele, thank you for your persistent, focused hard work. Keeping the page easy to follow helped me join in.
I emailed Shand’s CEO Jimenez and sent copies with notes to the ombudsman (mhaowfl@mhsow.org) and to Dr Holbert (rholbert@ufl.edu). I’ll follow up with phone calls, which count even though they probably won’t answer.
Note that rholb@aol.com doesn’t work.
You are welcome. Michele has done the bulk of the work. We appreciate your efforts, as well. We are a team. Go team Brian!
You’re welcome Judith. It is a pleasure to work earnestly for others in need.
Michele
Michelle,
Can you tell us what happened between the hospital and Disability Rights?
Has any ongoing support been provided to Brian as far transitioning to autonomous living?
Thanks.
Sheila
Cindi shared that the most support she removed from a government funded organization was from Todd Holloway at the Center for Independent Living in Tacoma.
I sent Brian a message through the “Send a Patient a message” feature. (7/12/2021 9am EST) Let him know you’re thinking about him and please give him words of hope and encouragement.
Thank you! Please include this in the empty space provided to make sure he gets his messages. “ This goes to the East wing of the Psychiatric Hospital” in empty space
https://ufhealth.org/send-patient-message
The hospital bills for electroshock. It has no incentive to discontinue what it is doing. Why is a court order needed for Shock, or is the court order for involuntary hospitalization during which time meds and procedures can be done at the discretion of the doc, who may or may not have also an incentive of some sort?
I agree that the billing piece is important. Follow the money. Maybe someone could look up Dr. Holbert in the Propublica database “Dollars for Docs” and find out how much, if any, Dr. Holbert has accepted from one of the two manufacturer’s of shock devices. Assuming he followed the rules and declared his ‘gifts’ or ‘speaking fees’. Then post the finding here.
Dr Holbert received money for the new “TMS” “therapy” most recently as that’s his new technique device. I can’t imagine how much he received for the shock device years back. It only goes back to 2017 even the TMS was promoted.
https://projects.propublica.org/docdollars/doctors/pid/1228497/year/2017
Dr Holbert has “incentives” because that’s what he specializes in. The Psychiatrists are telling the judge he needs 12 more shocks! And it’s been granted by the judge. The Psychiatrists and the hospital are getting paid to torture and hold him under duress. The US Courts are very unjust themselves as you can see, along with the State Appointed Guardian that forced this too.
Yes the financial incentives are very strong, both in the research end and the clinical practice end to keep the status quo going which could be summed up as ‘harm now and ask questions later’ Thomas Insel estimated that in his tenure as the head of the NIMH, he approved some 20 billion dollars” in neuro-biology related research for ‘mental illness’ and where has it gotten us this far? A fraction of that money could have been diverted to non-force/non-drug alternatives such as Soteria houses or peer respites or Open Dialogue.
Marilyn,
I cannot imagine Medicaid paying that much for the shocks but any amount is unacceptable! I think all monies paid out should be returned to Medicaid.
Michele
I wrote to the 45th President of the United States, Mr. Donald Trump as he is also a resident of Florida who can make a great impact on Brian.
Words of Caution: ⚠️
I welcome ZERO comments that are harmful towards Mr. Trump. I involve myself with the needy and I hear their cries for help. I welcome ZERO political messages and ZERO negative comments.
Thank you!
Believers in God, as you know, “anything” is possible with his power. Nothing is outside his realm of control. 🙏🏻 for Brian.
(Mark 9:23)
Go Michelle!
Wooohooo Sarah! 😊😊
🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻 For Justice for Brian
Yes, thank you for doing this, Michelle. I wholeheartedly support your sentiment of keeping politics and all the political vitriol out of our efforts to advocate together on the behalf of our fellow human beings who are suffering this way!
Russell,
There is ZERO reason to include any sort of politics in our cause, that’s why I stated it as I did. 🙂
Sometimes, it’s the just the person we need and their possible efforts aside from all of the work they are connected to. Those efforts needed to be separated and written clear for all to understand this as well. 🙂
Thanks for your input.
Michele
Sent an email to Dr. Holbert (used ALL of the email addresses given in the alert) appealing for him to reconsider having any part in this involuntary ECT, when he should be subscribing to the time-honored medical practice of “First do no harm”. I included this link, https://www.madinamerica.com/2017/06/no-psychiatrist-needs-use-ect/, an article posted on the MIA blog from a seasoned psychiatrist, Niall “Jock” McLaren, who states emphatically that no psychiatrist needs to use ECT.
Thank you Russell! We sure appreciate your family’s support!
Would it help to call the Florida Abuse Hotline, 1-800-962-2873, to report this abuse?
Anything can help. Thank you Dawn.
There’s a Medicaid Fraud and abuse line also, as the US Taxpayers are paying for this ill-treatment and aren’t even aware of it.
Thanks much.
I am concerned about fighting back because I might be next. Karl.
I hear ya. It could happen to any of us. If one of us is not safe, none of us are not safe.
I am concerned about fighting bac because I might be next.
Understandable. Please don’t fear. Take an action if you can. If you think it’s too risky to your own health then do not.
Praying for due Justice for you as well.
Know the feeling. I had experience with this facility and felt that the psychiatrists could not be appealed to or reasoned with.
Shands is protected by its reputation for being an internationally world renowned medical institution. From the way they treated me and other patients in their psychiatric facility, I got impression that no one took complaints made about their inpatient psychiatric facility seriously and looked into them.
Thanks for sharing. MFI volunteers will be monitoring this dangerous facility
This is the 6th (SIXTH) Contact to the Walton County MHA Ombudsman. This time I replied directly to the original test email where she tells me to send the report over. No response all this time.
Sent 7/11/2021 @ 8:38am (EST)
Hello,
Please contact us regarding the Patient who we have sent reports and documents on who has had his rights taken from him in the hospital. He “needs” advocacy from The MHA of Walton County. We have emailed you and attempted to reach you 6 times and no response whatsoever has been made to date. This man is suffering in the hospital! The MHA is funded with government funds to protect the vulnerable and protect the Patient Rights of those being abused in the MH system.
A rapid response would be nice. Our last correspondence was on 6/18, nearly 1 month ago.
Thank you.
Michele Diamond
Patient Advocates for US Civil and Human Rights