TWO doctors had no recollection of a man's threat to kill himself, an inquest has heard.

Nursing sister Julie Ferguson told a jury earlier this week her mentally disturbed son, Jonathan, threatened to kill himself the day before he was admitted to hospital.

He allegedly made the threat in front of psychiatrist Dr Roody Varghese and a social worker on a visit they made to the "agitated'' 25-year-old in his flat in Elmwood Court, Stockton.

Coroner Tony Eastwood was told that on his admission, as a voluntary patient, to the University Hospital of North Tees, unemployed Mr Ferguson told senior house officer Suman Ahmed - in the presence of his mother - that he would hang himself if forced to take his medication.

Days later, he hanged himself in the hospital's Stephenson Centre, after making a noose from knotted bedsheets, using his upended hospital bed frame as a makeshift gallows.

A jury was told earlier this week that Mr Ferguson was supposed to be checked every ten minutes.

Dr Varghese said he could not recall Mr Ferguson threatening to kill himself.

But he told the inquest: "As far as I remember, he did not make any specific mention. But, with patients with a psychosis, there is always a base line risk of that, because of the illness."

He was asked by barrister Nick Armstrong, representing Mr Ferguson's family, if he had any recollection of Mr Ferguson threatening to self-harm.

Dr Varghese said: "I don't remember."

But the jury heard Dr Varghese recommended that Mr Ferguson be checked on "roughly every ten minutes" while in the Stephenson Centre, in September 2006.

Dr Ahmed said he could not remember Mr Ferguson threatening to hang himself.

He told the inquest: "All I would say is that I would record it if he made such a comment. As the initial assessor, I would take it very seriously.'' Mrs Ferguson, a nurse at Middlesbrough's James Cook University Hospital, had earlier told the inquest that no one had checked on her son during visits she made to him in the Stockton hospital.

Mark Spencer, a former a team leader in the Stephenson Centre, said staff aimed to be "unobtrusive'' when relatives visited patients, while carrying out checks.

The inquest continues.