BASW survey reveals ‘extreme abuse’ in care homes
Social workers responding to a recent online survey have been damning in their condemnation of Adult Services residential and nursing home care, with the majority of respondents reporting that they had witnessed instances of ‘extreme abuse’.
More than half of social workers surveyed last month said that they had witnessed a level of disfunction severe enough that they believed the care home in question should be closed down, with one social worker expressing concern at “poor staffing levels, lack of leadership, staff training, rogue members of staff or the wrong mixture of individuals with specific needs leading to resident violence”.
The findings follow a difficult period for the sector in the wake of the abuse that was exposed by Panorama at Winterbourne View and the financial instability of Southern Cross. Ruth Cartwright, England Manager at BASW said: “Most staff providing home care work very hard and show great devotion to those they are helping despite the poor pay and conditions; others do not have the time for any sort of personal touch and are discontented – we do not look like a nation that exercises a great deal of care for our older people which is unacceptable.”
Assessment procedure and issues surrounding ownership was a recurrent concern amongst the 250 people who completed the survey, with over 80% stating that the CQC inspections were not adequate and a similar figure believing that care homes should not be run for private profit.
When asked if they would consider placing a one of their own relatives into a care home the response was mixed. Many respondents acknowledged the necessity of the service but over 75% expressed extreme reservation about the prospect.
More than 50% went as far as to reject the possibility entirely, with one social worker stating: “to call these places care homes is ironic in the extreme, there is nothing homely or caring about the vast majority as it currently stands.”
BASW will use these findings in its ongoing campaign and media work.
