Unqualified staff in home care

Written By Unknown on Senin, 15 Oktober 2012 | 15.36

15 October 2012 Last updated at 01:08 ET

More than 200 home care providers in England have been using staff without proper qualifications, the BBC's Inside Out programme has found.

It also found that dozens of convicted criminals had been working unsupervised as carers in people's homes.

The figures were released by the Care Quality Commission after a Freedom of Information Request.

Care Minister Norman Lamb said they were unacceptable, but did not show that "the whole system" had failed.

Inspectors for the Care Quality Commission - which regulates home care in England - found that 217 companies were employing workers who were not properly qualified.

The BBC investigation reveals there were almost 1,000 allegations of abuse made against home carers in the Midlands last year.

One carer in Coventry locked a vulnerable person out in the garden while another put a carrier bag over a care user's head.

Continue reading the main story

It isn't ridiculous to suggest that we should use the tax system progressively to look after and care for people in old age"

End Quote Centre for Social Justice chairman David Blunkett

One company in Birmingham employed 23 carers with criminal convictions for offences including theft and assault.

Inspectors also found that eight other companies in the Midlands were not doing Criminal Record Bureau (CRB) checks at all.

One care worker, meanwhile, had seven previous convictions.

Care Minister Mr Lamb said: "That is deeply disturbing and the organisation concerned obviously needs to be held to account by the Care Quality Commission.

"I don't think you can say that because something happens that is unacceptable that the whole system has failed."

He said there was "a very clear system that holds providers to account".

"Inevitably, in all walks of life sometimes things go wrong."

The Department of Health said it was the responsibility of individual providers to employ suitable staff.

Aiden Cotter, coroner for Birmingham and Solihull, called for independent monitoring boards - like those used in prisons - to be used in the care industry to protect older people.

"I don't think the government could ever afford to pay for the type of supervision that's necessary but it could be done by a voluntary organisation such as the Independent Monitoring Board," he added.


Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang

Unqualified staff in home care

Dengan url

http://sarapanoatmeal.blogspot.com/2012/10/unqualified-staff-in-home-care.html

Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya

Unqualified staff in home care

namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link

Unqualified staff in home care

sebagai sumbernya

0 komentar:

Posting Komentar

techieblogger.com Techie Blogger Techie Blogger