A NURSING home carer has been struck off after pulling a dressing off a pensioner’s arm so quickly that it removed his skin.
Maureen Goodison was removed from the register after the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) found evidence that she committed a string of offences in 2013 and 2014.
The offenses were committed during her time as a principal carer at Randolph Hill Nursing Home in Dunblane – which houses 60 elderly residents.
Their website boasts: “At Randolph Hill we display the highest possible level of care for older people.
“Compassion, warmth and kindness are the top priorities for our highly trained staff.”
But in November 2014 the panel found evidence Goodison had removed a dressing from one patient’s arm “quickly and without warning”, bringing his skin off with it and causing “unnecessary pain and distress.”
The panel also found evidence that Goodison had mistreated the same patient in a number of other ways whilst caring for him in late 2014.
They found that one one occasion she drowned out his speech by saying in a loud voice, “na na na na” – telling her: “In doing so you did fail to communicate in an appropriate manner.”
The council also found her guilty of failing to explain to the patient what she was doing – also telling a colleague not to explain what was going on.
And they found that she had roughly pulled the same patient over his bed – causing him to become upset on an occasion between 20 October 201 and 9 November 2014.
They also found evidence of her misconduct towards other members of staff at the home.
They cited evidence that she had referred to a colleague’s trousers saying “she was trying to dress as a skeleton” in November 2014.
And she was reported to have said she was “sick of working with crap staff” – or words to the same effect – whilst looking at the same member of staff and within earshot of her.
Disrespectful
In December 2013 they also found evidence that she had mimicked a colleague – failing to “communicate in an appropriate manner.”
The SSSC found Goodison guilty of misconduct as a result of the evidence and removed her from the register as of January 2.
They justified their decision: “You are alleged to have roughly handled services users, responded to them in a disrespectful manner and/or caused them physical and/or emotional harm.
“Service users have the right to expect they will be treated with dignity and respect and protected from harm by the social service workers in whom they, and the public, place their trust and confidence and your behaviour constitutes a breach of that trust and confidence.
“Social service workers have the right to expect that those who are supervising and managing them treat them with dignity, respect and ensure their safety and wellbeing.
“By making inappropriate comments about staff members, mimicking them and acting inappropriately towards them in the presence of service users and their families, your behaviour constitutes a failure to treat your colleagues with dignity and respect, an unacceptable disregard for their safety and welfare and a misuse of power which demonstrates oppressive, bullying and harassing behaviour.”
A spokesman for Randolph Hill said: “The well-being of our residents is of paramount importance so when concerns were raised about the standard of care being provided by this member of staff we suspended the employee and launched an immediate internal investigation to establish the facts.
“Following the conclusion of that process, and subsequent disciplinary procedure, we dismissed the employee in November 2014.
“We adhered to the strictest industry procedures and reported our findings to the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) who have now issued their own judgement on the matter.
“Our continuing priority is the welfare of all our residents and we strive to ensure that this isolated incident does not occur again.”
