Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Mrs B’s complaints about the care provided to her late parents, Mr and Mrs C. This is because sadly Mr and Mrs C are now deceased so the Ombudsman could not provide a remedy to them for any injustice an investigation might uncover.

The complaint

1. Mrs B complains about her late parent’s Mr and Mrs C’s care provider.
2. Mrs B says:

• carers left Mr C’s Zimmer frame out of his reach resulting in a fall to both Mr and Mrs C.
• Mr C was not shaved;
• carers did not know the code to the key safe;
• Mr C’s received poor catheter care;
• staff were not properly trained;
• she has not received answers to all her questions or the actions points referred to.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints about adult social care providers and decide whether their actions have caused an injustice, or could have caused injustice, to the person making the complaint. I have used the term fault to describe such actions. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 34B and 34C)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered the information and documentation Mrs B provided. I sent Mrs B a copy of my draft decision and considered her comments on it.

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What I found

5. Mrs B complains about the care Mr C received from his care provider.
6. Mr C fell attempting to retrieve his Zimmer frame and Mrs C fell on top of him. Mrs B says Mr and Mrs C were laying on the floor for 20 minutes until she found them. Mrs B says the care provider left the frame in the front behind a door making it difficult for Mr C to retrieve it instead of ensuring it was next to him in the kitchen. Following the fall, Mr C moved into a care home where sadly he died a few weeks later. Mrs C was hospitalised then moved into a care home where she lived until she passed away.
7. The care provider says the carer said she left the Zimmer frame at the back of the door next to Mr C in the kitchen on the day of the fall. Mrs B disputes this and says her father would not have moved the frame to a position it was difficult for him to retrieve it.
8. The Ombudsman could not make a finding on where the Zimmer frame was left. Nor could he say Mr C would not have fallen had the frame been left elsewhere.
9. Mrs B says Mr C received poor care including catheter care and personal care.
10. The care provider explained Mr B’s care plan recorded he wanted help to wash and dress in the morning, it did not record he wanted help with shaving.
11. Mrs B complained on one occasion Mr C’s catheter bag had not been closed properly causing leakage and on another the straps were too tight. The care provider apologised for problems incurred with the catheter and ensured a note was put on the system for care staff to check the straps.
12. The care provider accepted the carer did not have access to the key safe on one occasion and had to be let in by Mrs C. It said the carer contacted the office and updated them with the key safe code.
13. Mrs B says staff were not properly trained to manage Mr and Mrs C’s care. The care provider confirmed all staff have completed appropriate training.
14. Mrs B is unhappy with the care provider’s response and says it has not provided answers to all her queries or said what it has done to minimise the risk of similar occurrences happening again.
15. It is not the role of the Ombudsman to provide Mrs B with the answers she wants. He cannot remedy any injustice caused to either Mr or Mrs C from the actions of the care provider as they are both now deceased. Mrs B can ask the Care Quality Commission (CQC) who is the regulator, to consider her concerns when inspecting the care provider. Information about the CQC can be found on the website below:

https://www.cqc.org.uk/what-we-do

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Final decision

16. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. This is because sadly Mr and Mrs C are now deceased so the Ombudsman could not provide them with a remedy for any injustice an investigation might uncover.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman