Does anyone know about Safeguarding?

OAT

Registered User
Jul 13, 2019
12
0
Norwich
My mother has recently moved into a residential home and wonders around 24/7. She goes in to other resident’s rooms and takes their possessions, she sleeps in a chair in the lounge and never goes to bed. She wears multiple layers of cloths and on some occasions jumpers are worn as trousers.

She has attached her self to a male resident that she now believes to be her husband. Staff have reported that my mother entered his room with the intention of getting in to bed with him. The man was not aware of the incident as staff managed to redirected her out of his room. She then hung around his bedroom door for a further two hours before eventually returning to the lounge area.

This was reported as a safeguarding issue. My question is ‘is it?’
And how do I find out about the outcome?
 

love.dad.but..

Registered User
Jan 16, 2014
4,962
0
Kent
Yes in my view. Both residents if one or both lack mental capacity. The home are being diligent in regarding the incident as such and will have monitoring procedures put in place. With regard to outcome speak to the most senior carer on duty who takes overall responsibility or the manager and ask what measures they are now taking to minimise the chances of a repeat. The attachment to another resident you describe can be fairly common. Dad when in his NH received the attention of another resident although male in his case.
 

OAT

Registered User
Jul 13, 2019
12
0
Norwich
Thank you for your reply.
Well this is the thing, when I ask staff how my mother has been today, did she shower this morning, what did she have for breakfast etc?
I get one of the following replies:
I don’t know I wasn’t on shift this morning.
I don’t know I have never worked in this unit before.
I am a new member of staff and am not familiar with your mother, is she the one that walks around and around?

There does not appear to be a senior member of staff and I have often found myself in the lounge with many other residents on my own for great lengths of time.

My sister received a call when she was on holiday telling her of the above Safeguarding but when I went to have a meeting with the manager, the same day, she told me that it was not a safeguarding issue. I have subsequently got a copy of the report sent to safeguarding but the manger still maintains that it is not.

As I don’t think that the manager is being honest with us, do you know if it is possible to phone up safeguarding to find out the outcome, would they even talk to me?
 

Jessbow

Registered User
Mar 1, 2013
5,679
0
Midlands
It might be that the safeguarding report has gone in with ref to safeguarding the other resident. That they probably wont show you. Its about the other resident being' at risk' rather than your mother.



You might be better asking what steps have been taken to prevent/reduce the risk of your mother doing the same again.

The care home should keep a record of daily care, ask to see it- should be in her named folder, and signed by whoever completed the care, unless she is self caring in her care plan
 

Jaded'n'faded

Registered User
Jan 23, 2019
5,259
0
High Peak
The safeguarding team should involve you. Mum is in a care home and a while back, another resident pushed her over - she broke her hip.

The manager had to report it as a safeguarding incident. She discussed the matter fully with me and a while later I got a call from Safeguarding telling me what action they had taken, which was not much really, involving staff being more careful to supervise residents. I was asked if I was happy and if I wanted to take the matter further. I didn't - it could not have been prevented and my mother was just as likely to do the same thing to another resident. These things happen.

With your mother, I'm not sure how the safeguarding team go about these things, whether they consider there is a perpetrator and a victim or if they just view the 'situation' as the problem. It's very common in care homes for residents to wander, go into other rooms, take things that are not theirs or 'attach' themselves to another resident. And it's easy to see that if one person was pestering another, this would be a safeguarding matter. There are various measures the home can put in place to prevent this, including alarm mats to warn them, better supervision of the wanderer, etc. But obviously vulnerable people must be protected.

I would be concerned by the manager's lack of transparency. You could arrange another meeting and ask to see the safeguarding report and ask what measures have been put in place to prevent a repeat of the incident.
 

OAT

Registered User
Jul 13, 2019
12
0
Norwich
Thank you for your reply

I have spoken with the manager and asked her what are her plans are to keep my mother safe and she has informed me that the doctor has put her on risperidone to stop her walking around.
I said that I do not think that this is in her ‘best interest’ but was informed that it is “take the medication or out”. There is no other plan.

I have a copy of the safeguarding report provided by a more senior manager in the absence of the home manager.

I will ask to see the daily care plan, each time I visit.

Thank you
 

OAT

Registered User
Jul 13, 2019
12
0
Norwich
Thank you ‘Jaded’ for your reply I am sorry to hear about your mother’s experience resulting in her broken hip, I hope all is now well.

The man my mother has attached herself to also believes that she is his wife. They hold hands, walk around together, and he will stroke her face affectionately.

This has not gone down well with their real spouses and both are distressed about the situation.

My sister has requested an alarm so staff would know where mum is and they can then intervene before she enters anyones room but this has been declined as the manager says mother does not go to bed.
 

Jessbow

Registered User
Mar 1, 2013
5,679
0
Midlands
My sister has requested an alarm so staff would know where mum is and they can then intervene before she enters anyones room but this has been declined as the manager says mother does not go to bed.

Not sure how an alarm could work. Sounds as though she needs a 1:1 to supervise her- I doubt that can be provided without incurring costs.
 

OAT

Registered User
Jul 13, 2019
12
0
Norwich
Yes, that is what the manager has said, she needs one 2 one support but we would have to pay for it. We can’t afford that level of care, so I am not sure where we go from here!
Surely they just need more staff, do they?
 

Jessbow

Registered User
Mar 1, 2013
5,679
0
Midlands
Yes, that is what the manager has said, she needs one 2 one support but we would have to pay for it. We can’t afford that level of care, so I am not sure where we go from here!
Surely they just need more staff, do they?
No, they will have a ratio, which will meet the needs of the majority of the residents.
More staff have to be paid for, which you say you cannot do. They may ask you to find alternative residence which has a higher ratio
 

OAT

Registered User
Jul 13, 2019
12
0
Norwich
Yes, unfortunately because they are not running at full capacity, I think you are correct.

Thank,you for your help with my problem, it is much appreciated.
 

Banjomansmate

Registered User
Jan 13, 2019
5,395
0
Dorset
If your mother needs 1 - 1 care could you apply for CHC funding? I think I remember reading on TP about someone’s stressed and violent Mum receiving it? I might be wrong though.
 

canary

Registered User
Feb 25, 2014
25,018
0
South coast
My mum also had the delusion that she was married to another resident of her care home, although it never got as far as a safeguarding episode. It is actually quite common. The staff had to work quite hard to keep them apart, but neither of them required 1:1. I think a lot of whether the home can manage this depends on staffing levels and expertise
 

Sirena

Registered User
Feb 27, 2018
2,324
0
What would worry me most about all this is the apparently high turnover of staff who do not know your mother, and

I have often found myself in the lounge with many other residents on my own for great lengths of time.

The latter is unacceptable IMO, residents shouldn't be left alone with only a visitor for company for any length of time. In the lounge of my mother's CH there are always 2 carers, and often 3 or 4 (there are about 40 residents in all, and usually about 30 are in the lounge). That, plus the manager moving straight to medication to resolve the problem, would ring alarm bells with me. My mother wanders and had a phase of not sleeping much, but her CH said medication was a last resort.

Re safeguarding, I have had a few calls from SS safeguarding, each time it was when my mother had a fall and ended up in hospital. They calls were focussed on any changes which could be made to prevent it happening again. However she has also had a couple of 'incidents' where she and another resident annoyed each other, which involved a light slap on a clothed arm (fortunately ladies with dementia wear a lot of clothing!) These were reported to me, but not as safeguarding incidents.
 

OAT

Registered User
Jul 13, 2019
12
0
Norwich
Banjomansmate

Thank you for your post, I will check out chc funding and post how I get on.

Canary

Thank you for your post

I get the impression that the Alzheimer’s unit is an 'add on' to the residential home. I feel that the staff prefer to be with the more compas mentis people in other parts of the home. The staff look like they have drawn the short straw when they work with the Alzeimer’s sufferers.

Sirena

Thank you for your post

Yes the staffing level is very poor; on one occasion I went to visit mother and a young man and the manager were working on the unit. When I arrived the manager left and said to the young man to phone downstairs if he need her. He was Bank Staff working in between studying and had locked everyone out of their rooms so he could keep them all together. I could not find my mother and he had to open and check all the rooms just incase he had locked her in to someone else’s bedroom. She was found in her bathroom washing.

On another occasion I found myself dealing with several residents; the member of staff sitting tapping away on a laptop said “do you want a job, you are really good with them?” I nervously laughed and she said ”no really!”

I have tried to move my mother to another care home but once they read the Risk Assessment they withdrew the offer of a placement. Our options are now very limited.
 

Sirena

Registered User
Feb 27, 2018
2,324
0
I viewed a CH like the one you mention, it was built as residential for those with mobility problems, and they then added a small Dementia wing on to it. It looked as if they were great at the former and not good at the latter. Are there more CHs you can try who may accept her? It sounds as if the residents are just left to get on with it on their own a lot of the time, so there isn't a lot of 'care' happening.
 

OAT

Registered User
Jul 13, 2019
12
0
Norwich
The home said that they and the doctor had been refused help from the dementia and intensive support team (DIST). I phoned them (DIST) direct and they checked their records and confirmed that they had never received a referral. I contacted the care home manager with some very specific instructions about what to say when they phone the ‘single point of access’ telephone number that I provided. I gave her the code reference to get an emergency response. The manager insisted that she had contacted them and nothing could be done. I explained that I could not gain access to the service as I am only the son and it needs to come from her or the doctor and she must try again.
Two days later I contacted the surgery where the receptionist confirmed that a referral had been made, I phoned DIST and they confirmed that they would be visiting mother on Monday. Today (Monday) they came out and stated the first of six weekly sessions to assess my mothers needs.

It feels like I am walking through custard to get things done. Surely the manager should know all these things!

I am reluctant to approach other Care Homes just incase they knock mother back because of the safeguarding report. My father wants her to stay in this home because it is local to his home. My sister said that she visited mother today and she was very lethargic, I guess the Rispiridone is kicking in.

Poor mum she always said she never wanted to end up like her mother and would rather be dead than end up in a home.
 

canary

Registered User
Feb 25, 2014
25,018
0
South coast
There are several things about this home which are making me feel uneasy and I certainly dont like the way that your mum is being drugged when her behaviour could be managed by proper staffing.. You could go and just have a look at other homes, which will not commit you to anything ( I doubt that a good home would be fazed by the safeguarding)
 

Sirena

Registered User
Feb 27, 2018
2,324
0
I agree @canary.
@OAT Your dad may be less keen on this CH if he routinely finds his wife has been medicated to a semi comatose condition.
 

OAT

Registered User
Jul 13, 2019
12
0
Norwich
Thank you again for your time and your thoughts. I will see how we go for the rest of this week as the medication has been prescribed for seven days.