Missouri officials probe death of teen at psychiatric hospital

ST. LOUIS | State officials are investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a 16-year-old girl last week at a state-operated psychiatric hospital in Pagedale.

The girl was discovered choking by Hawthorne Children’s Psychiatric hospital staff Dec. 2 and was rushed by ambulance to St. Louis Children’s Hospital where she was declared dead around 8 p.m.

The county medical examiner reported that the girl choked on a plastic medicine cup that was folded in half, according to a statement released by the Missouri Department of Mental Health.

Officials have not ruled whether the death was a suicide, said Bob Bax, a spokesman with the department.

The girl had been a resident at the center since Nov. 3.

Hawthorne Children’s Psychiatric Hospital is a 52-bed facility for children 18 and younger and provides long-term residential psychiatric care as well as shorter acute care for kids with a mental health crisis. The hospital serves children who have no health insurance, limited resources and would not be able to receive help elsewhere.

The teen was a patient in the acute care unit. Bax declined to comment further on details of the death until the investigation was completed.

Hawthorn is the only free-standing children’s psychiatric hospital in Missouri and services the eastern third of the state. The state has a second psychiatric hospital in Cape Girardeau for severely emotionally disturbed children.

“This tragic event will be investigated carefully to determine what happened and any additional preventive measures that might be implemented in the future,” said Keith Schafer, director of the Department of Mental Health, in a prepared statement

This story was originally published December 7, 2009 at 8:07 PM with the headline "Missouri officials probe death of teen at psychiatric hospital."