Summary: Mrs X complained the care home, commissioned by the Council, failed to provide adequate care to her late husband. She was unhappy to pay the outstanding care charges because of this. The Care Quality Commission has considered the care home’s actions and the Council has offered to waive the care charges. I have discontinued the investigation as it is unlikely I could achieve anything more by further investigation.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained a care home, commissioned by the Council, failed to provide adequate care to her late husband. This led to a hospital admission and, on his admission to hospital, Mr X was found to have pressure sores. Mrs X says she has already had to pay £637.56 for the poor care and the Council is still pursuing her for £159.39 which she does not feel she should have to pay.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe:

• it is unlikely we would find fault, or
• the fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained, or
• it is unlikely we could add to any previous investigation by the Council, or
• it is unlikely further investigation will lead to a different outcome.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I have considered the information provided by Mrs X and have spoken to her on the telephone.
4. I have considered the Council’s complaint responses to Mrs X.
5. I gave Mrs X and the Council the opportunity to comment on a draft of this decision.

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What I found

6. Mr X moved into the care home in April 2018. In July 2018 he was admitted to hospital because he was coughing and choking. Mrs X says, when he was admitted to hospital the nurse showed her that Mr X had bed sores.
7. Mr X died in hospital later that month.
8. In September 2018 Mrs X complained to the Council about the care Mr X received at the care home. She was unhappy to pay the balance owed for Mr X’s care because of this. Mrs X also emailed the Care Quality Commission (CQC) regarding the care home. The CQC is the regulatory body for care homes and it will monitor a care home’s performance to make sure services meet the fundamental standards below which care must never fall. Where it finds poor care, it will use its powers to take action.
9. The care home responded to Mrs X in October 2018. It set out the actions it had taken to support Mr X. It said Mr X was repositioned regularly and had pressure relieving equipment including a specialist mattress and specialist boots. It had also involved the GP and District Nurse in his care. The Council also responded and set out that it had investigated her concerns around pressure sores with the care home and found no cause for concern regarding the care provided to Mr X. It did not consider it appropriate to waive the care charges.
10. Mrs X telephoned the Council in November 2018. She remained unhappy and considered Mr X should not have had pressure sores. The Council told Mrs X the care home had cooperated with the CQC who had looked into her concerns. The Council had looked at information from the care home which showed appropriate equipment and a care plan were in place to protect Mr X. It agreed to send Mrs X details of the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman.
11. The Council contacted Mrs X in February 2019 to pursue the outstanding debt. Mrs X responded to the Council that she was not satisfied the Council had fully responded to her complaint and she remained unhappy about the care provided to Mr X. In July 2019 she complained to us. She was unhappy at having to pay £637.56 for care that she says was not provided. In addition, the Council was still pursuing her for £159.39 when she had complained about the care Mr X received and this was not resolved. She wanted details of what investigation the Council had carried out of the care home.

Findings

12. Mrs X was unhappy paying the care charges when she was dissatisfied with the care provided to Mr X. The Council’s complaint investigation did not find fault. The CQC has looked into the care home and as the regulator of care services it can, and will, take action if it finds poor care at the care home.
13. In response to my enquiries, the Council has offered to waive the outstanding debt of £159.39 and to refund the £637.56 Mrs X has already paid.
14. While Mrs X remains unhappy with the care provided to Mr X she considers time has moved on and she wishes to accept the Council’s offer. Given the CQC has looked into the care home and the Council has agreed to waive the charges I have ended my investigation as it is unlikely I could achieve anything more by further investigating the complaint.

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Final decision

15. I have discontinued my investigation. The Council has offered a remedy to the complainant and it is unlikely I could achieve anything more by further investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman