An Afghanistan war veteran who tried to kill himself as he struggled with post-traumatic stress disorder says he feels abandoned by the health service.

The former Royal Engineer, who had slit his throat, was locked in a police cell because there were no mental health beds for him anywhere in the county.

The father, aged in his 20s who lives in Medway, was later sent to a private hospital in Cambridgeshire, paid for by the NHS, where he was given no contact with his partner or newborn daughter for four weeks.

Craig, who asked for his surname to be withheld, has shared his story to highlight what he calls the dangerously inadequate care he received.

There have been no mental health beds in Medway since the closure of A-block at Medway hospital in 2013.

Patients are instead sent to Dartford, Maidstone or Canterbury – or further afield.

Millions has been spent sending patients out of the county and in private hospitals and the lack of beds is resulting in long delays in treatment.

Our sister paper, the Medway Messenger has previously highlighted how some patients have been left without key workers, known as care co-ordinators, due to staff shortages, leaving them vulnerable.

Craig has not had one for several months.

His mental health deteriorated in May when he lost his job.

With thoughts about taking his own life, his friend advised him to go to hospital.

After seven hours in A&E, the mental health crisis team sent him home. He then took an overdose and ended up back in the emergency department but was sent home.

Craig then tried to cut his throat. A neighbour called 999 and he was taken back to Medway hospital by ambulance.

But Craig still wasn’t given the help he needed. He spent three days in an observation ward in A&E and eventually walked out of hospital with a canula still in his hand.

He was reported to the police and officers picked him up in the street.

He was then sectioned under the Mental Health Act.

He said: “Police told me this was the only way I was going to get help. They said I would get to see a mental health doctor rather than a nurse.”

Craig was taken to Priority House in Maidstone where they was supposed to be a free bed.

But the last bed had just been given to a woman from Margate. He was instead taken to Medway police station where he was locked in a cell.

He said: “I was made to feel like I had done something wrong. The custody sergeant was not aware of my situation so he treated me like a criminal.”

After hours in the cell, Craig tried to strangle himself.

He had to be resuscitated by an officer and was treated in the medical unit at the police station.

He was then returned to a cell for several hours before being taken to Littlebrook Hospital in Dartford. He was finally admitted, 70 hours after being picked up by police.

After a few days at Littlebrook, Craig was sent to a Priory Group private hospital in Cambridge where he spent the next four weeks.

He had no contact with his partner and didn’t see her or his newborn daughter during his stay.

After a month there, he was sent back to Kent where he spent time in both Priority House and Littlebrook.

Craig said: “I missed a lot in those four weeks. My daughter was only a few months old. I spent four months in total in hospital and I only saw her twice in that time.

"They made it very difficult for my partner to see me.

“I was made to feel like I had done something wrong. The custody sergeant was not aware of my situation so he treated me like a criminal" - Craig

“It felt like I was in a prison. If you wanted to call your family you had to wait most of the day just for a short call. I felt very cut off.

“That time in hospital made things incredibly difficult for us as a family. It is a period we have struggled to move on from.”

Prime Minister Theresa May has called for mental health to be given equal standing as physical health.

Locally, Cllr David Brake, who heads Medway’s health and well-being board, has said there are many failings in mental health care. He has made persistent calls for in patient beds to be reinstated in Medway.

Craig said: “The mental health care I have received has been inadequate, dangerously so. My care co-ordinator left and I have not been issued with a new one. It has left me feeling abandoned.

“I spent six years in the Royal Engineers and served in Afghanistan. When you are in the Army you have that strong support network around you.

"When you leave you expect the NHS to give you the help you require.”

A Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust spokesperson said: "Towards the end of 2016 we worked hard to reduce the number of private beds used down to zero in line with targets announced by Chief Executive Helen Greatorex when she joined the Trust in summer 2016.

"This is being achieved by looking at how patients are admitted and discharged by working with partner organisations to avoid unnecessary admissions.

"This includes working with Kent Police on Section 136 detentions and street triage as an alternative to admissions.

"Additionally, we have our Single Point of Access contact centre, which supports people in a crisis through advice or referral.

"We continue to work with those who engage with our services to ensure they receive the help they need."