A woman was fed dog food by care workers in the last few months before her death, a Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman report has found
A woman was given dog food by care workers who couldn’t read the label in the final months before her death.
Portsmouth City Council has issued an apology for the incident, after care workers employed by Radis, who were contracted to deliver home care for the council, made a ‘litany of errors’.
A report conducted by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman discovered that the care the woman received constituted a “significant personal injustice” as she was frequently left alone for “prolonged periods of time” or not fed.
The woman, referred to as Mrs Y, received at-home care from GP Homecare Ltd, otherwise known as Radis.
She was left with limited mobility and confined to her bed following a fall in April 2024, with care workers visiting her home daily.
Mrs Y’s son raised safeguarding concerns about a “lack of management oversight at Radis”, alleging that staff did not consult her care plan, visits were not logged accurately and a ‘Do Not Attempt Resuscitation’ document was discovered “scrunched up in a cupboard”.
A Section 42 safeguarding enquiry was launched by the council to investigate the concerns, while Radis initiated an internal investigation.
Mrs Y suffered a mini-stroke and it was agreed by her family and Radis that she required a “soft diet due to the increased risk of choking”.
However, in mid-June 2024, a care worker was caught giving the woman dog food, recorded as a “lamb dinner”.
Two care workers visited Mrs Y’s home, and a week later one raised concerns about witnessing the other “feed dog food” to Mrs Y.
The care worker “only realised the meat was dog food when they noticed the packaging in the kitchen”.
They initially tried to contact a senior colleague to report the incident but their call went unanswered so they reported the matter in person the following week.
They were questioned by the senior manager who asked “why they did not remove the dog food” during the visit and “why they did not report the incident on the day it happened”, and instructed to remove the dog food from Mrs Y’s freezer “to prevent any other care workers doing the same”.
It was subsequently discovered that the care worker “fed three mouthfuls of microwaved dog food to Mrs Y”.
“This was vacuum packed dog food stored by Mrs Z in Mrs Y’s freezer. The food was labelled as “fresh take on dog food” and “for adult dogs and puppies”.”
Following a meeting between Radis and the family, it was agreed a new care provider was required.
However, in July 2024, Mrs Y’s family chose to postpone the new provider’s start date after a decline in her health, meaning Radis continued to provide end-of-life care.
Mrs Y’s daughter claimed that “footage from Mrs Y’s home camera showed evidence of a care worker force feeding Mrs Y”.
Later in July 2024, Mrs Y passed away and it was determined she “died from frailty of old age”.
Radis acknowledged fault in the care provided in response to Mrs Y’s family’s complaints, confirmed action taken against the care workers and apologised.
The council’s investigation also discovered that Mrs Y was “left unattended for prolonged periods and on occasions left wet or in darkness overnight”.
The report indicated that staffing was “inconsistent”, with concerns voiced about workers’ “attitude, compassion and respectful communication”.
There were also “Allegations that staff falsified records and that some visits had not taken place despite being recorded”.
The ombudsman suggested the council apologise, refund the care fees, and offer a symbolic payment of £1,000 to the family to “recognise significant distress” and the “delays” in the safeguarding investigation.
Councillor Matthew Winnington, cabinet member for community wellbeing, health and care, stated: “We accept the Ombudsman’s findings in full and recognise the seriousness of what happened in this case. We ended our contract with Radis early and we no longer work with, or commission services from them.
“The care described in this report is not the standard anyone should expect, particularly at such a vulnerable time in someone’s life. We have apologised to the family and are very sorry for the distress they have experienced; we know this has been deeply upsetting for the family.”
He continued: “These events happened two years ago, and since then we have taken action to strengthen how we oversee care providers…Our adult social care services recently received a ‘good’ rating from the Care Quality Commission, reflecting the wider positive experiences of residents, the strength of partnership working across the city, and the support available to help people remain independent.”