Carer caught on camera dragging OAP on floor

A woman has spoken of the horrifying moment she saw footage of her elderly mother being dragged along the floor by a carer at a nursing home.

Julia Baines had become so concerned about the care her mother Lillian Buttery was receiving at Lake View Nursing Home in Withnell, near Chorley, that she decided to install secret cameras in her room.

The film footage she saw shocked her and, when passed to the Care Quality Commission, ended with the home being closed down.

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Mrs Buttery, who had advanced dementia, had been living at Lake View since 2010 but in 2014 she began losing a lot of weight, she suffered urinary tract infections and had injuries from a number of falls.

“She really had started to deteriorate,” said Julia. “She used to be quite fit and active but she started having these falls that no one witnessed and urine infections that no one tested.”

After speaking to the care home manager, who she felt did not take her concerns seriously, Julia installed a hidden camera in her mother’s room between Christmas 2014 and the New Year 2015.

The footage revealed, among other things, that on one instance Mrs Buttery was dragged across the room.

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Julia shared the video evidence with the Care Quality Commission, Adult Safeguarding and the Police.

In January 2015, Lake View Nursing Home announced it was to close.

Mrs Buttery was moved to another care home but passed away after several months aged 93. Since then specialist lawyer Veronica Male, of Tollers Solicitors, provided legal support to Julia to claim compensation for the suffering her mother endured.

A spokesman for Embrace, which owned Lake View, said: “Following the allegations in 2014, we fully engaged in the external investigation and worked closely with all of the appropriate authorities to address any issues identified.

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“However, we have never been shown the video footage in question, despite our requests, and nor have any specific allegations ever been confirmed with us.

“The decision to close Lake View was incredibly difficult, but was taken because of the challenges we had finding suitably qualified full-time staff in the area. Following the closure, a comprehensive internal review was completed so that we could learn from this experience. All recommendations from this report were implemented.

“Our number one priority is always the health, safety and wellbeing of the residents we support. Any complaints are always thoroughly investigated and we strive to always provide the very highest standards of care.”