Home ‘sorry’ after woman, 87, was ‘pinned’ to bed by worker
ACARE home has apologised after the 87-year-old mum of a former Rochdale AFC player was ‘pinned’ to her bed by a support worker, who was then allowed to keep working during a police investigation.
Amanda Thornhill was found guilty of wilful neglect after she restrained dementia sufferer Marian Johnson and prevented her getting out of bed at the Each Step care home in Blackley in March 2018.
But Mrs Johnson’s family have told of their anger after Ms Thornhill was allowed to continue working at the Charlestown Road home, despite being under police investigation. Ms Thornhill, 48, was eventually sacked after being convicted.
Community Integrated Care, the charity which runs the home, said it apologised for ‘any distress this situation caused’ adding the ‘more appropriate course of action would have been to suspend Ms Thornhill from work until the outcome of the case.’
Following a four-day trial in June last year at Manchester Crown Court Ms Thornhill, of Blackley, was sentenced to a 12-month community order and 150 hours’ community service.
Mrs Johnson’s son Ian, 59, of New Moston, told of the moment he learned of the incident, which took place in the early hours of the morning. Mr Johnson said: “I was just devastated. I didn’t understand how it could have happened. I was at work when the home called and I just felt a bit helpless.
“When I got to the home my mum was holding her thumbs. She didn’t understand why they were hurting. She has severe dementia. She doesn’t have the capacity to tell me what happened, but you could tell she knew something wasn’t right.
“In court they said Amanda Thornhill had been trying to put mum to bed for about two hours.
“On the fifth time she quite aggressively grabbed hold of my mum’s arms and legs and pinned her to the bed. The carer who witnessed what happened said in court they had never heard anyone scream like my mum did.
“It’s the stuff of nightmares. It’s upsetting. I still think about it every day.”
After the incident Mr Johnson said the family initially weren’t told which care worker was involved, but later found out through a third party.
And when Mr Johnson, a former professional footballer at Rochdale AFC, discovered Ms Thornhill was still working at the home he complained.
He said: “I went to the manager and said I want her out of here. I don’t want her anywhere near my mum. They said there was nothing they could do as she was innocent until proven guilty. I rang the head office and complained to the regional manager and they said they would sort it out.
“I don’t understand why they kept her employed. Why she wasn’t suspended? It’s just wrong.”
Mr Johnson described his mum, a former electrical repairer who has three grandchildren and six great children, as a ‘very happy, generous woman.’
But he said because he doesn’t have power of attorney - the legal authority to make decisions about his mum’s affairs - he felt excluded from much of Each Step’s investigation into the incident.
Ms Thornhill told our sister paper the Observer she ‘maintained her innocence’ and believes her actions and the amount of force she used were reasonable. She said: “It was a busy night. There were lots of buzzers going off in three other rooms.
“I was on my own on the unit looking after 12 residents. It usually took more than one attempt to put [Mrs Johnson] to bed.
“On the fourth attempt at putting her to bed she lashed out at me without warning.”
She claimed: “It wasn’t her fault, she’s got dementia, but she was hitting me, kicking me and trying to bite me. I got hold of her hands and tried to block her from hitting me.
“A colleague came in as the lady was wrestling with me, trying to push me off the bed. She saw what was happening, the lady was saying her thumb was hurting and my colleague asked me to go to another room.
“I was called in the next day and told I was suspended from caring duties.
“A few days later I was interviewed at a police station and was charged about 12 months after that.
“I don’t think I could have done it any other way that night. She wasn’t safe. I felt it best to try and keep her in bed. I don’t feel I stepped over the line.”
In a statement Carolyn McConnell, director of Quality at Community Integrated Care, said: “At Community Integrated Care the safety and wellbeing of the people we support is paramount and as soon as we became aware of the allegation against Ms Thornhill, we took immediate action, notifying all relevant authorities.
“Ms Thornhill was dismissed from our employment following her conviction and the conclusion of our own disciplinary investigation. However, following an internal review of this matter, we recognise that whilst we did suspend Ms Thornhill from care duties during the inquiry, the more appropriate course of action would have been to suspend her from work until the outcome of the case.
“Community Integrated Care apologises for any distress this situation has caused and we will ensure we learn all necessary lessons from this experience.”