Deaf TikTok star who took poison ‘failed’ by NHS services, inquest hears

A TikTok star who died after consuming a poisonous substance she bought online told an NHS support worker about the purchase a month before her death, an inquest has heard.

Imogen Nunn took a poisonous substance and died in Brighton, East Sussex, on New Year’s Day 2023. The 25-year-old, who was deaf, raised awareness of hearing and mental health issues on her social media accounts, which gained more than 780,000 followers.

On Monday, an inquest into her death in Horsham heard that Nunn was “failed” by services that were meant to help her, according to a statement by her mother, Louise Sutherland.

The inquest was told that Nunn, who was called “Immy” by loved ones, had contacted her support worker at the deaf adult community team (DACT) at South West London and St George’s NHS trust on 23 November 2022, and told them she had “bought something online that she planned to take to end her life”.

She also made reference to a “pro-choice suicide forum”, the court heard.

In the statement read to the inquest, Thomas Beamont, representing Sutherland and Nunn’s father, Ray, said: “Ray and I believe that Immy felt hopeless and let down by the time of her death, and that she was failed.

“Immy didn’t want to die, but she was exhausted from fighting desperately for the help she needed.”

Read full story

Source: The Guardian, 17 March 2025