POLICE PROBE CARE HOME DEATHS
15 die of Covid after it’s ‘used as a dumping ground’ for hospital cases
DETECTIVES have launched an investigation into a care home which was ordered to close after 15 residents died following a coronavirus outbreak.
In what is believed to be the first probe of its kind outside Scotland, police are investigating the spate of deaths over a six-week period.
They came after the home admitted a number of untested patients who were discharged from two local hospitals as part of efforts to free up beds for an expected wave of Covid-19 cases.
Sources at the privately-run home, Temple Court in Kettering, Northamptonshire, said the 30-bed facility was used as a ‘dumping ground’ for suspected recovering coronavirus patients.
Of the 15 suspected coronavirus-related deaths at the care home from the first admission on March 19 – when the home was said to be Covid-free – to May 1, four residents had coronavirus officially recorded on death certificates.
But others are strongly believed to have died with the contagion.
In total, 15 NHS patients were admitted to the home over the week from
March 19, with the first confirmed Covid19 death on March 28. As the outbreak spread, all 12 full-time staff went off sick with symptoms, leaving the home reliant on agency staff. In total, 10 of those 15 are believed to have subsequently died. But the Mail can reveal relatives of other Temple Court residents who died outside of that timeline this spring have also been contacted by the local authornever ity in connection with the probe – suggesting that the total number of deaths due to the scandal may eventually rise.
Andrew Phillips, 62, whose 88year-old mother Margaret died at the home on March 24, confirmed he had received a letter notifying him of the investigation. Mr Phillips, of Kettering, said his mother had already been in poor health and was not tested for coronavirus. He declined to comment further.
Temple Court, which is run by Amicura, part of the Minster care group, had to move all surviving residents to other homes in the week of May 11 – after the Care Quality Commission said it had serious concerns over standards of care. The watchdog carried out an inspection last month and its findings are due to be published soon. A previous inspection in May 2019 found that the home required improvement.
An NHS drive in mid-March to free up hospital beds for an expected surge in virus patients led to up to 15,000 people being discharged into the community, including care homes. The Department of Health later said that patients didn’t need to have tested negative for the virus before being accepted into homes. The policy stayed in place until April 15.
Figures show that nationally, more than 11,000 care home deaths have been due to coronavirus. A Northamptonshire Police spokesman said they were aware of the Temple Court deaths, adding: ‘We are working with the Safeguarding Adults Team at Northamptonshire County Council to investigate these further.’ The council is also investigating.
Their inquiries are expected to examine the role in the outbreak of the transfer of patients from Northampton and Kettering General Hospitals to Temple Court, and why action was not taken sooner to stop coronavirus tearing through the care home. A Temple Court spokesman said: ‘The home was left in an extremely challenging position after a sudden influx of residents from the NHS – some of whom had very complex needs – and a subsequent outbreak of Covid-19.’
A spokesman for NHS Northamptonshire CCG and Northamptonshire County Council said: ‘All residents of Temple Court... have now been moved to new placements elsewhere to ensure no one is at risk..’
Last month it emerged that Police Scotland were investigating the deaths of three residents at the Home Farm care home on the Isle of Skye. Ten residents have died with Covid-19 symptoms, and 56 residents and staff are known to have contracted the virus.