– I want a public debate. I want a political debate. I want those who know a responsibility to come forward and explain their view of how this works in Norway today. Robert Gjetsund sits at the kitchen table at home at Vinderen in Oslo. He says that the last nine months or so have been cruel. On 1 August last year, he received a shocking death message from the police. A seriously mentally ill man had knocked on the door at his parents’ home in Otta in Gudbrandsdalen. The married couple Herma (83) and Odd Gjetsund (88) were brutally stabbed to death in their apartment. The perpetrator then called the police and told them what he had done. How could that happen? After living through the trial against the murderer and reading the expert assessments, the son is left with questions. How could this happen? Why did no one catch the changes in the very mentally ill neighbor of his parents? – I think that the health care that was provided could have been better. And if it had been better, I think the perpetrator would not have become so psychotically ill, says Robert Gjetsund. The grief after the loss of the parents is heavy to bear. Robert Gjetsund describes his parents as two kind people who were concerned about their children and grandchildren. His father was very interested in talking about technology. The mother was an outdoors person who enjoyed being out in nature. CONTROVERSIAL: Robert Gjetsund believes the murders of Otta could have been avoided. – It is hard to say that and it is controversial to say it. But the way I view the matter today, it is actually correct to say. Photo: Arne Sørenes / news He believes the parents would have had many good years ahead of them if the mentally ill neighbor had not come to the door that fateful evening. He is applying for an interview with news because he wants, if possible, to contribute to a change in society. He wants to have a debate about the organization and implementation of health care for seriously mentally ill people in Norway. Maybe that way we can avoid a number of tragedies, he believes. – There are two things that strike me. One is that there has been a strong reduction in the number of overnight places for this type of patient over many years. Responsibility has largely been transferred to municipal level. You can imagine that it is demanding for the municipalities. And I also think that there could have been a more differentiated service offer, based on how seriously ill these patients are, he says. WERE NEIGHBORS: Herma (83) and Odd Gjetsund (88) lived in this apartment at Otta i Sel. The man who killed the couple was a neighbor who was very mentally ill. Photo: Alexander Nordby / news Mentally ill perpetrators Almost every third murder and attempted murder carried out in Norway in the years 2014-2021 was committed by people with serious mental disorders. This is revealed in a Kripos report from December last year. The man who took the lives of the retired married couple in Otta has now been sentenced to transfer to compulsory mental health care. He was psychotic and not criminally sane. Vestre Innlandet District Court writes that the risk of recurrence is high. The man has a long history in mental health care. According to the verdict, he received follow-up for many years through the Bredebygden psychiatric center in Otta. But this 24-hour service was closed in 2020. Instead, the follow-up of the man was taken over by an ambulatory FACT team (Flexible Assertice Community Treatment). This meant that he sometimes had 24-hour care, but largely lived in his own apartment with health care. In the summer of 2022, it seems that the man got worse. During the month before the murders, he stated to local health personnel that he had suicidal thoughts and thoughts of stabbing women in the abdomen with a knife. He himself asked to be admitted to Reinsvoll psychiatric hospital. Instead, he received an offer at DPS in Lillehammer, where he was hospitalized for a period in July. He was discharged from there just a week and a half before the murders took place. In the judgment, district court judge Ingulf Nordahl also offers some thoughts on the follow-up of seriously mentally ill people in Norway: “No single person in the circle around the defendant can be blamed for the murders. As a society, however, we must be able to ask ourselves whether we have a good enough system to catch most of the seriously mentally ill in time and protect society from such horrific acts taking place. The evidence in this case leaves a definite impression that here we as a society still have a way to go. This applies both to what must be considered to be the most optimal treatment plan for this patient group, and how to ensure better knowledge sharing about this patient group within the healthcare system and between the healthcare system and the police.” TRIAL: Prosecutor Thorbjørn Klundseter and defense attorney Anders Bjørnsen during the trial that took place in Vestre Innlandet district court in Lillehammer. Photo: Anders Bakkerud Larsen / news Launches escalation plan news has asked political leadership in the Ministry of Health and Care if they agree that there is a need for a greater debate about mental health care in Norway. It is State Secretary Karl Kristian Bekeng (Ap) who answers on behalf of the government: – Yes, there is definitely a need for a debate on this. We are also preparing for that when we put forward an escalation plan for mental health in a month’s time, he says. Is healthcare good enough today? LAUNCHES NEW PLAN: State Secretary Karl Kristian Bekeng (Ap) in the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs, states that the Minister of Health will present an escalation plan for mental health. Photo: Esten Borgos / Borgos Foto AS – No, there are challenges in several places. It is both about resources, but also a lack of professionals and using professionals correctly. Bekeng says there has been too one-sided focus on how quickly patients have to go through mental health care in hospitals. He believes that patient groups who are seriously ill, and who need a lot of concrete follow-up, should be given the opportunity to stay longer in treatment. Are the municipalities well enough able to take care of the tasks assigned to them? – Some municipalities are, but there is too much variation. One of the things in this escalation plan will be to provide a clear framework around what is expected of the municipalities and what should be expected of specialized mental health care in the hospitals, says Bekeng. He points out that the government in the Hurdal platform has determined that the reduction of inpatient places in psychiatry must be stopped. Bekeng also says that the escalation plan that the government is putting forward will last for ten years and that the Minister of Health has said that the plan will come with fresh funds. Believes the perpetrator received proper follow-up The State Administrator in the Inland has assessed whether the perpetrator in Otta received a proper follow-up from the specialist health service in the Innlandet Hospital and from Sel municipality. The inspection report concludes that there has been no breach of health legislation – the health care was provided “in line with good practice”. Robert Gjetsund says he reacts to the conclusion. – That report hit me like a punch in the stomach. I strongly disagree with that assessment. But isn’t it the case that it will be difficult to predict absolutely all such events? – Of course. I don’t think we can expect to get down to zero. But I think it’s too loud today. I think it is possible to change the way we practice the Health and Care Services Act and the Specialist Services Act, so that it both provides better services for the patient and better protection for society, he says. The State Administrator in the Interior has been presented with the statements from Robert Gjetsund. In an e-mail to news, the State Administrator writes that although they assessed that there was no breach of health legislation, the inspection report pointed to a point for improvement related to the mapping of symptoms of psychosis. Read the full response here: Read the full response from the State Administrator in Inlandet We have great compassion for the bereaved and understanding for the questions raised by the murdered couple’s son Robert Gjetsund. It is understandable that in the aftermath of this incident, questions are raised as to whether the patient received appropriate health care in advance. Prior to the murders, the patient wanted to be admitted, preferably to Reinsvoll. The patient’s request for admission was complied with, and he was admitted to the specialist health service, at the inpatient unit at DPS Lillehammer. During admission, the patient’s condition was assessed by a specialist, and a suicide risk and violence risk assessment was carried out. The risk of violence was assessed as not elevated at discharge. The offer the patient received during admission at Lillehammer, including interviews and environmental therapeutic measures, would not have been significantly different at Reinsvoll. The state administrator’s role is to assess whether the health care that was provided was justifiable and whether there is a breach of health legislation. We have assumed that a specialist has made assessments of the patient’s condition, assessment of suicide risk and risk of violence, and that treatment measures were initiated with the offer of admission to the specialist health service and more frequent calls/contact. Our assessment is therefore that the health legislation was not breached. Assessing the risk of suicide and violence in an individual is difficult, and one cannot expect that health personnel will always be correct in such assessments. Although the State Administrator assessed that there was no breach of health legislation, a point for improvement was pointed out in connection with the mapping of symptoms of psychosis. Both Sel municipality and Sykehuset Innlandet HF have submitted the statements to Robert Gjetsund. They both refer to the State Administrator in the Interior’s assessment of the service offer in this case. – It hurts me to go into the case. For Robert Gjetsund, any escalation plan in psychiatry will come too late anyway. He has a sincere wish that other people should not be affected by such a tragedy as he himself experienced. That is why there needs to be a larger social debate, he believes, about how we can improve healthcare for the seriously mentally ill patients: – It is painful for me to get into the matter. But if I can somehow start a debate about how we handle this type of patient in Norway today, whether something positive can come out of it in the form of a change, then that is the main reason why I want to take it up, he says. TRAVEL FRIEND: Air walks with the family dog Rufus are important breaks in everyday life for Robert Gjetsund. By allowing himself to be interviewed by news, he hopes to contribute to a social debate about the services offered to seriously mentally ill patients. Photo: Alexander Nordby / news
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Robert Gjetsund wants a public debate after his parents were killed in Otta – news Innlandet – Local news, TV and radio
