I have visited high-, medium- and low-secure hospitals and units in my role at the Institute of Mental Health. Many of these are relatively new builds like Hellingley Centre in East Sussex (medium-secure) evaluated as good by Care Quality Commission in 2019 for its forensic care. Yet not all such services are modern, up-to-date or achieving the kind of healing environment that they claim.
While the quality of secure hospital settings varies, the best of these try to mitigate the prisonlike environment of high walls or high security fences as at Hellingley. They seek to support the recovery and rehabilitation of people with serious mental health problems who pose a risk to the public or themselves.
When individuals present a grave and immediate risk to the public, they may find themselves sent to high-security hospitals usually under the Mental Health Act, the closest to Hellingley being Broadmoor. At such facilities, the merging of what we think of as a hospital can seem completely lost in the forbidding architecture and grounds.
In The Wonders of Doctor Bent, the worlds of Jason Hemp, an English lecturer, and Dr Bent, the unlikely Medical Director of high-security psychiatric hospital Foston Hall, come together in a dark tale of murder, revenge and abandonment. Attempting to track down his twin brother’s killer, Hemp finds his life unravelling in unexpected and frightening ways, whilst visionary Dr Bent attempts to reform Foston Hall into a place of comfort, making it less prisonlike, all while facing his own mental health challenges.
The novel draws on nearly four decades of working in mental health. This has brought some anxiety in ensuring that what I represent is credible among fellow professionals. The feedback from leading figures in the sector suggests that I have passed the test:
"Crawford is a master storyteller. The Wonders of Doctor Bent covers deep and dark themes in a compelling and highly engaging manner. Be prepared to be taken on a thrilling adventure that delves into the very essence of what makes us human...” - Professor Ahmed Hankir, Consultant Psychiatrist, and author of The Breakthrough
"Brooding, brilliant and beautiful." - Dave Chawner, standup and TV comedian, mental health campaigner and author of Weight Expectations
"A beautifully written and engaging psychological thriller that will keep you thinking long after the final page… With impeccable prose and a thought-provoking plot, this dark literary thriller not only captivates fans of the genre but also offers profound value to those with lived experience of or an interest in mental health, shedding light on the complexities of compassion and accountability." - Dr David Crepaz-Keay, Mental Health Foundation
“A moving tale of loss and love. Jason Hemp breaks down after his perfect brother is murdered and Dr Bent, an imperfect, thrill-seeking, motorcycle-riding healer, fights to transform the humiliating state of the public services. His revolutionary changes are undermined, and he is left wondering what it is all for, and resolves to repair his own dark wounds...” - Kam Bhui CBE, Professor of Psychiatry, University of Oxford
"A brilliantly written thriller which draws us into the dire consequences of adverse childhood experiences. It poignantly reveals the potential for recovery." - Gene Beresin MD, Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
"Moving storytelling and vivid characters take the reader on an emotional journey of grief, loss, and love. Though the themes are dark, this novel is a celebration of the resilience of the human spirit. Crawford at his very best." - Thomas Curran, Leading psychologist and author of The Perfection Trap
The Wonders of Doctor Bent is available at Amazon, Waterstones, WHSmith, Foyles, Cranthorpe Millner, and all good bookshops.