Vulnerable people ‘let down’ by care providers

Vulnerable adults are being ‘let down’ by care providers who are not going through the proper processes, a new report has found.

The new report, published by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, outlines concerns about the way some of the most vulnerable people in society are being treated when decisions are being made on behalf of them.

The Ombudsman has found delays in assessments determining whether someone has the capacity to make decisions for themselves, poor decision making when deciding on someone’s best interests, and not involving friends and families in the decision process as major problems.

The report also includes problems the Ombudsman sees with the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards System (DoLS) system, including cases where people have been abandoned in care homes for many years, having not had the proper assessments carried out.

In the year 2016-17, the Ombudsman investigated over 1,200 adult social care complaints in detail. Up to one in five of these complaints involved concerns about mental capacity or DoLS. Following investigation, the Ombudsman upheld 69 per cent of those investigations, which is higher than the average figure of 53 per cent.

The report shows that some councils and care providers of not properly understand the processes for making decisions on behalf of people who lack mental capacity. It offers advance and guidance on how to get things right when working with people who may lack mental capacity.

Michael King, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, said: “The people who these measures are designed to protect are all too often being let down by poor practice. And, while I appreciate the complex emotional and practical decisions social workers need to make, the people they look after are still entitled to be treated fairly, and have their assessments undertaken correctly and in a timely manner.

“People should have the right to make choices for themselves unless they have been assessed as not having capacity. We have issued this report to highlight where things are going wrong, so we can help authorities get things right and improve services for people.”