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Care workers help to stop abuse of vulnerable residents

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Simon (not his real name) worked as a senior care assistant. He observed one of the nurses slap residents and, on one occasion, he saw the nurse put his hands around a resident’s neck and force them into their room. Simon could only hear a scream and some banging after this. Simon did not want to raise his concerns to the new manager because other employee’s concerns had been ignored and confidentiality breached.

We discussed Simon’s options and advised that he speak with the deputy manager in confidence. She took his concerns seriously and, soon after, other workers came forward with similar incidents that they had witnessed. The nurse was later convicted and sentenced to two years in prison.

Simon wrote to us some time later and said,

“Your advice and support were invaluable at this time… I never regretted my actions… [My colleagues and I] got through this ordeal by supporting each other and in the knowledge that we were doing the right thing.”

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Social worker speaks up about inappropriate relationship

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Andre (not his real name) was a residential social worker in a children’s home. He was increasingly concerned that a colleague, Lionel (not his real name), seemed to have developed a close relationship with a 12 year old girl in the home. During a holiday, Lionel insisted that the girl should travel in his car alone with him and he spent a lot of time with her during the holiday.

Andre and a colleague raised their concerns discreetly to the local authority who launched an investigation and put Lionel on special leave. Once the investigation concluded, Lionel returned to work and Andre called Protect worried that this was the wrong decision.

We advised Andre to contact the Head of Child Protection at the local authority to explain his concerns. However, we also clarified that it was for the local authority to decide the appropriate action and what mattered was that it was sure that Lionel was not a risk. We highlighted that Lionel’s return to the home did not mean that no action had been taken. Andre spoke to the local authority and felt reassured with its decision as he knew that it would monitor the home and remind staff of the value of whistleblowing.

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Manager convicted for theft in care home

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Felix (not his real name) worked in a care home. He and some of his colleagues believed that a manager was stealing from residents by recording money as being given to particular residents when they had received none.

Felix raised his concerns with the owners of the home and an investigation quickly found that Felix was right. The manager was dismissed and reported to the police. Unfortunately, working relationships became tense as the manager’s close colleagues objected to Felix’s actions. Felix was suspended over false allegations that he had mistreated the residents.

We advised Felix to address these allegations on their merits: they were false and he could easily show that to be the case. The allegations were found to have no substance but the owners decided to transfer him to another home anyway. We helped Felix to draft a letter explaining that he wanted to stay at the home and that transferring him after he had blown the whistle would send the wrong message to other staff. The owners reconsidered and Felix stayed at the home.

The manager was later convicted of stealing £1,400 from the residents and Felix was pleased that the atmosphere at work had improved.

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Care worker thanked for raising patient safety concerns

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Manisha (not her real name) worked as a senior care coordinator in a care home. A member of staff forgot to give some residents their medication so the home manager flushed the remaining packs of drugs down the toilet to cover-up the mistake. Manisha raised her concerns to head office who suspended the manager and the member of staff pending an investigation. Manisha felt uncomfortable about this.

We reassured Manisha that it was positive that senior managers were taking the concern seriously and thanked her for her efforts. We advised her to speak to the investigator if she felt victimised for raising her concerns or if the manager or anyone else was trying to find out the identity of the the whistleblower. Manisha was thanked by senior managers and the concern was resolved without her being victimised.

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Will the pandemic improve care home whistleblowing culture?

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Protect’s Head of Policy, Andrew Pepper-Parsons features in the latest issue of Care Markets magazine, discussing how Covid-19 has affected the sector. Protect, the UK whistleblowing charity, helps whistleblowers safely raise concerns about wrongdoing, abuse or poor practice. We run an advice line where whistleblowers can call us for free confidential advice about how to … Read more

Protect response to CQC Whorlton Hall report

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The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has published the findings of an independent review into how it dealt with concerns raised in relation to the regulation of Whorlton Hall. Bosses at the (CQC) have been criticised in an independent report by David Noble into why it buried a critical report into Whorlton Hall hospital, a privately-run … Read more

Social care needs a strong whistleblowing culture

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18th April 2018 Social care in England is undervalued, underfunded and on the brink of collapse. Being old and in care can, for some people, feel precarious. The statistics showing the state of care homes across the UK are sobering. The Care Quality Commission regulator says almost one in four care homes are inadequate or … Read more

SOCIAL CARE NEEDS A STRONG WHISTLEBLOWING CULTURE

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Social care in England is undervalued, underfunded and on the brink of collapse. Being old and in care can, for some people, feel precarious. The statistics showing the state of care homes across the UK are sobering. The Care Quality Commission regulator says almost one in four care homes are inadequate or require improvement, while … Read more