Shut for ever, care home where pensioners were tied to chairs

A CARE home facing claims that vulnerable residents were tied to chairs by belts in ‘unacceptable’ conditions has been shut down.

Privately run Muirhead Care Home came under scrutiny last month after an earlier government watchdog inspection.

The unannounced care inspection found that residents were not being given enough food and others were having vital medication withheld from them.

The Care Inspectorate took the case to court, and an order was granted to temporarily close the home as of August 31.

Yesterday, another court order was imposed that permanently stops the home, near Alford, Aberdeenshire, from operating.

Aberdeenshire Council last night confirmed that all 35 residents had been successfully rehomed before the August 31 deadline.

A spokesman for the Care Inspectorate said: ‘The quality of care experienced by people living at Muirhead Care Home was unacceptable and posed a serious risk to people’s health, safety and wellbeing.

‘In response, it was necessary to seek the emergency cancellation of the care home’s registration in the courts to safeguard residents’ welfare.

‘This is not something the Care Inspectorate did lightly and we appreciate the impact that this will have had on former residents and their loved-ones.’

The spokesman continued: ‘We have worked closely with Aberdeenshire health and social care partnership to support residents to move into alternative care arrangements.

‘Anyone with a concern can contact us on 0345 600 9527.’

Last month, Care Inspectorate chief executive Karen Reid summarised some of the findings.

She said: ‘Our last inspection found highly distressing condi- tions. We saw evidence of vulnerable people being tied to chairs with belts, which is extremely dangerous and unacceptable.

‘Residents were not getting enough food. There were not enough staff on hand to help people who really needed support. Some people were not given essential medicines.

‘We found a lack of appreciation as to why these things are so unacceptable.’

The home’s directors said they had made ‘strenuous efforts’ to address the concerns raised by the Care Inspectorate.

However, this was not enough for the watchdog and the case was taken to court.

Relatives of residents claimed to have been completely left in the dark in the run-up to last month’s courtroom showdown.

However, several gave accounts of grim conditions for residents.

Pearl Crawford’s 76-year-old uncle, James Richie, had been a resident of Muirhead for three years. He has Parkinson’s disease and cannot walk without aid.

Mrs Crawford, who lives a few miles away from the home, said she had sobbed in her car many times after leaving her wheelchairbound uncle. She claimed he lost a ‘huge’ amount of weight due to a lack of food given to residents.

She also claimed that she had found him soiled and ‘dirty’ and that staff complained when asked to do anything as they were ‘always looking up Facebook on their phones’.

‘Highly distressing conditions’