Summary: Mr X complained the Care Provider, Lincolnshire Home Care Ltd, wrongly accused him of abusing his late mother, Mrs Y. The Care Provider was at fault. It had no evidence which supported its allegations and it did not refer the matter to the Council’s Safeguarding Team for further investigation. It also poorly communicated with Mr X. The Care Provider has agreed to apologise to Mr X for the distress and uncertainty it caused him. The Care Provider will also review with staff record keeping, safeguarding procedures and effective communication to prevent a recurrence of fault.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained the Care Provider, Lincolnshire Home Care Ltd, wrongly accused him of abusing his late mother, Mrs Y. Mr X said it caused him significant distress and uncertainty. He wants the Care Provider to recognise its faults and apologise to him.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about adult social care providers and decide whether their actions have caused an injustice, or could have caused injustice, to the person making the complaint. I have used the term fault to describe such actions. If they have caused an injustice we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 34 B, 34C and 34 H(3 and 4) as amended)
3. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)
4. Under our information sharing agreement, we will share this decision with the Care Quality Commission.

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How I considered this complaint

5. I spoke with Mr X and considered the information he provided.
6. I considered information Lincolnshire Home Care Ltd provided.
7. I considered our “Guidance on Remedies”.
8. Mr X and Lincolnshire Home Care Ltd had the opportunity to comment on the draft version of this decision. I considered their comments before making a final decision.

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What I found

Safeguarding adults

9. Safeguarding adults is the process of ensuring adults who have care and support needs, are protected from abuse and neglect.
10. The Care and Support Statutory Guidance states organisations providing care and support to adults, have a duty to report allegations of abuse and neglect to councils.
11. Councils must make enquiries if they think a person may be at risk of abuse or neglect and has care and support needs. Enquiries range from a conversation with the adult or their representative to a formal multi-agency plan or course of action.

The Care Quality Commission

12. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the statutory regulator of care services and has guidance for care providers which they must comply with to meet the fundamental standards of care as set out in the Health and Social Care Act 2008. The guidance includes:
• Regulation 13 safeguarding people who use the service from abuse and improper treatment: staff must be aware of their individual responsibilities to prevent, identify and report abuse when providing care and treatment. This includes referral to other providers; and
• Regulation 17 good governance: records relating to the care and treatment of each person using the service must be complete and accurate.

What happened

13. Mrs Y lived in her own home. Mr X lived next door to Mrs Y and accompanied her to her medical appointments. Between October 2021 and July 2022, Lincolnshire Home Care Ltd provided care and support to Mrs Y in her own home.
14. In April 2022, Mr X asked Mrs Y’s General Practitioner (GP) to visit Mrs Y in her home for future appointments as he began to struggle taking Mrs Y to her appointments. Mr X said following this, care workers suspected he was abusing Mrs Y. As a result, the care workers told Mr X he was no longer allowed to accompany Mrs Y to her medical appointments.
15. Mr X called the Care Provider’s office and asked it why he was not allowed to accompany his mother to her medical appointments. Mr X said the Care Provider told him it was not able to discuss the matter with him as there was an ongoing safeguarding investigation in relation to allegations of abuse.
16. Mr X called the Council and asked it if it was conducting a safeguarding investigation in relation to allegations of him abusing his mother. The Council told Mr X it had received no safeguarding alert from the Care Provider and so there was no ongoing investigation.
17. Mr X said he contacted the Care Provider on numerous occasions and complained about the matter. Mr X said he was distressed and the Care Provider had not explained to him why it had suspected him of abusing his mother. In the meantime, Mr X said he was able to spend time with his mother as usual.
18. Mrs Y died in July 2022.
19. In September 2022, a senior care worker from the Care Provider wrote to Mr X in response to his complaint. The letter said:
• Mrs Y had shared serious concerns with staff about her safety with Mr X;
• the Care Provider had followed correct policies and procedures in reporting concerns and contacting other agencies involved; and
• it would take the same action again if it was required.
20. Mr X remained unhappy and complained to us.
21. In response to my enquiries, the Care Provider said:
• it was unable to provide us with evidence which supported its allegations of Mr X because staff did not document their concerns;
• staff did not inform the Registered Manager of their concerns; and
• it had taken disciplinary action against staff involved with the matter.

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Findings

22. The Care Provider told us it had no evidence which supported its allegations of Mr X abusing Mrs Y. This was fault and not in line with regulations. The Care Provider should have kept a record of any concerns it had with Mrs Y’s safety.
23. The Care Provider did not raise a safeguarding alert with the Council. This was fault and not in line with guidance or regulations. As a result, no investigation took place which would have concluded the Care Provider’s concerns, whether they would have been substantiated or not.
24. The Care Provider poorly communicated with Mr X. It told Mr X a safeguarding investigation was being conducted which was not the case. The Care Provider delayed responding to his complaint by several months and its response did not explain to Mr X what its exact concerns were, what policies and procedures it had followed and which agencies it had contacted. This caused Mr X distress and uncertainty.

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Agreed action

25. Within one month of the final decision, the Care Provider has agreed it will give Mr X a written apology for the distress and uncertainty it caused him. The apology will reflect what the Care Provider did wrong and how it caused an injustice to Mr X. The Care Provider will refer to our new ‘Guidance on Remedies’ on how to make an effective apology.
26. Within one month of the final decision, the Care Provider has agreed it will review with staff:
• the importance of record keeping. This is to ensure that staff record any concerns they may have in relation to the safety of people who use the service;
• safeguarding procedures in line with statutory guidance so staff are aware they need to refer all safeguarding concerns for people who use the service to the Council to allow a proper investigation to take place; and
• effective communication with people who use the service and their relatives, to ensure staff promptly respond to any concerns, and communication is honest and clear.
27. The Care Provider will provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Final decision

28. I have now completed my investigation. The Care Provider was at fault. It has agreed to the recommendations to remedy the injustice caused and prevent a recurrence of fault.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman