A little perspective

When allegations surfaced of dementia sufferers being neglected at Bamburgh Court Care Centre in South Shields, the ‘Fourth Estate’ went on high-alert.

With reports of residents being forced to sleep on filthy mattresses on the floor, mouldy food left rotting in the cupboards and faeces smeared on the walls, it’s no wonder many older people fear going into a care home.

These shocking allegations about Bamburgh Court Care Centre appeared last week in the Daily Mail and this story will no doubt heighten fears about the standards of care in residential homes.

But from what we have seen at Bettercaring, these cases are few and far between and the vast majority of people in care are well treated and lead happy lives.

In truth, nobody knows how prevalent abuse is in care homes, which is why the announcement of a £2 million study by the Department of Health and Comic Relief into the risk of abuse in care homes and the infringement of dignity on NHS wards is timely.

The research, which, crucially, will take in the views of older people, should finally show how widespread – or not – abuse is in care situations.

The results of this research – slated to come out in 2011 – will hopefully demonstrate that abuse in care is rare and that cases such as Bamburgh Court are the exception rather than the rule.

But more importantly, it should help to change perceptions about the industry.

In the meantime, the government has announced plans to strengthen protection for vulnerable elderly people in care homes and ensure those that do suffer abuse can bring the perpetrators to book.

The government plans to make people who have publicly-funded care in private homes subject to the Human Rights Act, which should safeguard them from such things as unfair eviction. Also, self-funders will be able to refer complaints to an independent adjudicator from later this year.

These are all positive steps and should, in time, help to rebuild the industry’s reputation, which has been consistently tarnished in recent years by stories such as Bamburgh Court. It will take a long time to change the public’s perception, but these are steps in the right direction.