Disabled adults 'abused' at Chesterfield care home
- Published
Vulnerable disabled adults were sworn at, ridiculed and inappropriately physically restrained at a care home at the centre of a police investigation, according to a report.
Residents were moved from St Joseph's Specialist Care Home in Chesterfield following a Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection in May.
A 49-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of assault.
The newly-published CQC report rated the service as "inadequate".
It said people living at the home were "not protected from abuse that could potentially breach their human rights".
"During our inspection we identified significant shortfalls in all aspects of the running of the home," the report states.
Concerns raised include:
- "Inappropriate physical restraint practices" and other restrictions were used
- Some staff swore while working with people
- Insufficient numbers of staff to ensure people were not at risk
- No toilet seats and no hand soap dispensers for all the downstairs toilets
- A fire exit door would not open, putting people at risk
- A large hole in the medicines cupboard, potentially giving access to unsecured medicines
"During our inspection one person disclosed to inspectors and the provider that a member of staff had ridiculed them," the report states.
"We were not assured that staff treated people with dignity and respect."
The home, run by Aspire Specialist Care Limited, is now closed.
It previously accommodated up to seven younger adults with learning disabilities or autistic spectrum disorder.
The CQC inspected the home in January and asked for action to be taken to improve care.
These improvements had not been made by the time of the May inspection, so Derbyshire County Council found new homes for the five residents.
Derbyshire Police said the 49-year-old man arrested, who is from Matlock, is still on bail pending further enquiries.
The BBC was unable to contact Aspire Specialist Care Limited.
- Published16 May 2015
