By Ben Lynch, Local Democracy Reporter
A woman has received £100 and an apology from Westminster City council after two care visits to her home were missed following her being discharged from hospital.
The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman also found the local authority at fault for delays completing a mental capacity assessment for the woman.
According to a recent decision published by the Ombudsman, the woman, named Ms C, was admitted to hospital with an infection in June 2022.
She was discharged later that same month with a care and support plan of three visits daily by provider Sagecare, before being admitted to hospital again the following month after feeling unwell. Westminster carried out a care review a few days later and opted to increase Ms C’s plan to four visits daily.
This was due to resume on July 25, the day she was discharged from hospital. However, at a visit on July 27, her carers realised no-one had stopped by over the previous two days. Sagecare subsequently raised a safeguarding concern with the council.
In December 2023, Ms C was visited by a social worker investigating concerns raised by Sagecare that she had refused support and her health may be declining.
The social worker reported Ms C was able to remain at home with support, and the council reduced the number of visits to two daily after she said she did not need the four visits previously prescribed.
Sagecare again raised concerns about Ms C’s declining care in January 2024. Later that month, the woman’s son filed a complaint regarding the care the council was providing his mother.
The council responded by saying it was awaiting the GP assessment into Ms C’s mental state, that it could not force her into supported housing, and that it had asked for a mental capacity assessment to be carried out as soon as possible.
In their report, the Ombudsman said: “Sagecare raised concerns with the council in early January 2024 that Ms C was refusing care and potentially putting herself at risk. So at this point, the council should have raised the question as to whether Ms C had the capacity to make the decision to refuse care.
“It made a referral to the GP several weeks after concerns were raised, but there was nothing to prevent it carrying out its own capacity assessment. It did not do this. This was fault.”
The Ombudsman however noted the ‘injustice’ caused to Ms C was limited, and that the completed assessment found she did have the capacity to make decisions about her care. There was also fault found in the visits Sagecare missed between July 25 and 27.
Agreed actions include the council apologising to Ms C and Mr D and paying Ms C £100, as well as briefing staff on the importance of the ‘no-reply’ policy and other issues within three months.
A spokesman for Westminster City council said: “The council acknowledges that the two visits were missed and has already sent its sincere apologies to Ms C and Mr D for the distress caused.
“The service has since reviewed and put systems in place to prevent this from happening again, in line with the Ombudsman’s recommendations.”
A spokesman for City and County Healthcare Group, which owns Sagecare, said: “We acknowledge the Ombudsman’s decision and are sorry for what our service user and her family experienced. We have reviewed our procedures and training to ensure the right lessons have been learned.”
Pictured top: Westminster City council offices in Victoria Street (Picture: LDRS)