BBC Panorama film exposes care home failures

la lucia

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Jul 3, 2011
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The regulator, the Care Quality Commission, said it has had serious concerns with the Morleigh Group for some time, and had issued warning notices.


"Warning notices"...... why is that plural? "For some time".... what an admission.

The CQC need to up their game, if a notice is issued then it needs to be serious and not allowed to go any further without significant improvement.

Very impressed with the journalists - this is what good journalism is about.
 

PeggySmith

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Apr 16, 2012
1,687
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BANES
What I can't believe is that people were being charged so much. MIL's NH charges much less and still manages to provide good care.
 

Mal2

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Oct 14, 2014
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Enfield
This is so awful. I dread the time my OH may have to go into CH. I don't have trust in any of them. It's so frightening.
 

nitram

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Apr 6, 2011
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Bury

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LYN T

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Aug 30, 2012
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Brixham Devon
Exactly Saffie. In a previous CQC report the home had a distinctive smell of urine throughout the building:mad: Nowadays, with the amount of products on the market, there is no excuse for nasty smells.

I've just finished watching the local politics show; so many institutions/agencies involved but the terrible situation carried on for some time.

XXX
 

love.dad.but..

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Jan 16, 2014
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Kent
Deeply depressing and upsetting, we trust these homes to look after our loved one and to treat them with care, decency and dignity as though it was their own. Is it just me who was disgusted by the CQC woman who seemed to duck out of her responsibility to reinspect inadequate rating to ensure care had been improved immediately rather than passing the buck to the LA or CGC to work with the provider. Where are the CQC teeth when basic care and compassion is so blatantly inadequate?
 

love.dad.but..

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Jan 16, 2014
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Kent
So if not, who does? The system seems flawed and clearly leaves individual vulnerable residents whose relative has serious concerns open to further abuse by failing and inadequate care providers. My dad is in a good nursing home, ok with minor niggles but that happens at all homes, self funding and expensive SE corner however I am always vigilant eyes and ears not just for him but all the residents.
 
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jimbo 111

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Jan 23, 2009
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North Bucks
I know that in what we like to call 'the old days; not everything was perfect
but care homes were then the direct responsibility of the local authority
All the staff were employed and trained by the council and all care homes were owned by the council
At some stage in the passing years the idea of council staff and anything run nationally or local became a dirty word to the up and coming financial experts and their gullible
local authorities
We now have a system where daily we see or hear of abuse and negligence of those people who are vulnerable and incapable of protecting themselves
I acknowledge the fact that there are some genuinely good care homes
but there can be no doubt that the problem is brought about by councils ( councillors ) who find it easier to pass the buck of their responsibilities to organisations whose first priority is Profit
When we come to our senses and demand that local authorities take back their responsibilities of direct care and financial matters , then we will perhaps get back to the days when mostly good care and compassion were the top and only priority )
jimbo
 

DeborahBlythe

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Dec 1, 2006
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Part of the problem with the inspection system is that, as one of the experts pointed out, if CQC moves to close a home, a new problem arises over where to house the residents. There aren't enough care beds available and much of the so called 'market' in care is monopolised by a few large companies. Also CQC don't have the resources to go back and check that every recommendation is acted upon in a timely manner. CQC does not draw up its own rules about whether they can investigate individual complaints. I doubt that CQC will be able to improve things in the near future. They are seeking to lose 400 staff soon.
The failures of the care home inspection system go beyond CQC. It needs commitment from government to resource CQC more conscientiously and to extend their powers. And something needs to be done about the provision of care beds. If the private sector can't be trusted to run affordable decent homes consistently, perhaps some other provision needs to be looked into.
 
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Abbsy

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Jul 28, 2016
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Staffordshire
Recently fought hard to get my mum taken out of a care home in North Staffordshire with similar problems. She was sent there from hospital against my wishes, under threat that if I didn't accept this placement for her, she would be sent to a home 20 miles away.

I raised safeguarding concerns with the CCG from day 1, but was accused of being prejudiced about the home because I had heard of it's reputation from experienced carer's and other professionals beforehand. Adult Safeguarding (joke) didn't want to know because the placement was paid for by the NHS. The NHS didn't want to know because they had commissioned the placement. :mad::mad::mad:

Thankfully after 5 weeks of daily phone calls and help from my MP she was moved to a home that we're very pleased with. I feel so sorry for residents who have no-one to advocate for their rights.
 

Murper1

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Jan 1, 2016
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There are good and very good care homes. So why do bad care homes exist? So sad to see those poor people and the kind of things the staff were saying. Feel sad and angry.
 

Kevinl

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Aug 24, 2013
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Salford
So why do bad care homes exist[?QUOTE]

Visit a care home and see how many people (for whatever reason) never get visited, how uncomfortable some of the visitors are, how little they interact with the other residents even to the point of only visiting in the resident's room.
The main issue though is the "culture" of the place, one rotten apple can spoil the barrel" as they say and where at present it is the person/people involved who get prosecuted as as Pete R pointed out in a different thread "With the introduction of the CA2014 new offences came into effect under The Criminal Justice and Court Act 2015, Section 20-25. In effect it holds carers to account for wrong doings and care providers to account for allowing the offences to take place." (link below).
Once a "provider" not just the member of staff ends up in court the it may focus the people in charge to be more selective in who they hire.
Today in Manchester 2 care workers were sent to prison "Both women are sobbing in the dock as they’re addressed by Judge Lowcock. He says they showed some of the residents a ‘total lack of respect and dignity’ and says they recorded incidents for their own amusement and posted them on social media."
Wait until some of the care home managers find them selves in the dock too.
K

The judge says only a custodial sentence will be appropriate. He has read letters from them explaining their remorse and testimonials.
appropriate"


http://forum.alzheimers.org.uk/showthread.php?97063-Carers-amp-Care-Providers-be-warned!
 

Pete R

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Jul 26, 2014
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Staffs
That is the same response I have had from CQC even though on their web site they do say they have powers to hold individuals and providers to account. I had even seen Neglect/Acts of Ommission on other residents but CQC said that the other residents/relatives would have to make a complaint for them to investigate.:confused:

I am awaiting a result to a complaint that I have made against the CQC regarding their inaction.
 
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Pete R

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Jul 26, 2014
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Staffs
So if not, who does?
Up till April 2015 the simple answer was no one. There were the offences of assault, certain breaches of Health & Safety and some rarely used offences under the Mental Health Act. However following the Stafford Hospital and Winterbourne View enquiries new offences came into law in April 2015 and it is believed the first prosecution concluded yesterday.
http://forum.alzheimers.org.uk/showthread.php?97063-Carers-amp-Care-Providers-be-warned!
 

Abbsy

Registered User
Jul 28, 2016
9
0
Staffordshire
Following my mother's recent experience of an extremely poor nursing home, I've come to the following conclusions about how these places continue to exist/flourish:

1. I don't think the situation is helped by the lack of meaningful information available about care homes. Ironically, the appalling care home that my mother first went to had a better CQC report than the excellent one that she is now in. It also scored 5/5 on both carehome.co.uk and NHS Choices. However, when I spoke to my MP about the situation, I found out that he was already working hard to discourage the local CCG from using the care home following years of constituent complaints.

2. To my knowledge, there is no public mechanism for the naming and shaming of poor care homes without fear of litigation. I considered making my complaints public by writing a review for carehomes.co.uk, but was deterred by the perception that the site is more protective of the care home providers than of service users. It is far easier to gain valuable information before buying a toaster from Amazon for example, than it is to find accurate reviews of the standard of care for the most vulnerable members of our society. How can that be right?

3. I was fortunate enough to know care workers who warned me of the poor standards at the nursing home. I had also had experience of a good nursing home when my dad was in one several years back. Many service users and their families have no such knowledge or experience to use as a bench-mark, and so may accept the standards at the home without question.

4. My mother went into the home (with no choice whatsoever) under the CHC scheme, and I was told by the hospital that I had been lucky(!) to get this placement due to a severe shortage of care home availability. I was extremely wary of making complaints in case the funding would be pulled in some kind of retribution for 'rocking the boat'. I guess others may be in this position too.
 

fizzie

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Jul 20, 2011
2,725
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I've seen much worse than the programme last night which was bad enough.

The CQC is the best we have - we just need to put constant pressure on them to act - they say they don't 'investigate individual complaints' but they do in that a serious complaint will trigger an earlier and sometimes immediate inspection so whilst you are complaining to adult care safeguarding which is the first port of call anyway, it is right a proper to send an email to the cqc at complaints@cqc.org.uk and it takes very little more time. At the same time Eileen Chubb at Compassion in Care works long and hard and has achieved some fantastic results and will always listen to and advise on complaints and often take them up too Info@compassionincare.com. The pressure on the small charity is high so sometimes it is necessary to chase.

There is no point in bringing down the CQC but they need more statutory powers and they need to use them - that's where the pressure needs to be - in my opinion