Summary: We will not investigate Ms B’s late complaint about care her parents received from their care provider in 2018. This is because the complaint is late, Ms B knew of the concerns in 2018 and could have come to us sooner. There are no good reasons to disapply the law in this case.

The complaint

1. Ms B complained about the standard of care her late parents, Mr and Mrs C received from their care provider prior to them passing away in May 2018. Ms B says she and her family have been affected by the trauma of losing both parents within three days of each other and the poor care Mr and Mrs C received has exacerbated her disabilities, increased her stress levels and impacted on her anxiety and depression which remain an ongoing battle. Ms B says the care provider should apologise, admit it failed both parents, provide reassurance no other family will have to go through what they have and reimburse some of the fees paid for care neither Mr or Mrs C received.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a care provider has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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What I found

4. Ms B says she has submitted an appeal for retrospective Continuing Health Care funding, but says in addition to this the care provider should reimburse money her parents paid for care but did not receive. Ms B says family members provided the care because there was not enough staff, staff did not respond to the buzzer to assist Mr C to the toilet and he was left on the floor following a fall. Ms B says Mrs C’s medication was not managed properly, she lost weight, her health deteriorated, and staff failed to respond to her needs appropriately.
5. Ms B says she complained about the care Mr and Mrs C received at the time and has been trying to navigate a difficult complaints process. In addition, her sister was very ill and she had several personal family matters to deal with. Ms B says she was going through a difficult time personally and the memory of the poor standard of care Mr and Mrs C received will remain with her.
6. There is no good reason to exercise the Ombudsman’s discretion to investigate this late complaint. Sadly, Mr and Mrs C are now deceased, so we could not remedy any injustice an investigation might uncover.
7. Ms B is concerned that no other family should have to endure what they did. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the statutory regulator of care services. It keeps a register of care providers who show they meet the fundamental standards of care, inspects care services and issues reports on its findings. It also has power to enforce against breaches of fundamental care standards and prosecute offences.
8. The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 set out the fundamental standards those registered to provide care services must achieve. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has issued guidance on how to meet the fundamental standards below which care must never fall. Ms B can ask the CQC to consider her concerns about the care provider.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate this late complaint. This is because there is no good reason to disapply the law in this case.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman