Nursing home manager faces claims of abuse, neglect

April 11th, 2009 by Jennifer Walker-Journey

A former manager at a Cambridgeshire, England nursing home says he is the victim of sabotage by disgruntled staff members who didn’t agree with his measures to improve the facility’s poor standards. But the claims made against him are mounting, according to the Cambridge News.

One report says that John Mitchell-Whiteford, the former manager at the Drey House in St. Neots, left a fallen resident on the floor for an hour and a half, stepping over her at one point while she lay there. He reportedly shouted at the resident and took a walking stick away from her even though she needed the stick for mobility.

The daughter of that victim, Carol Porter, claims her 90-year-old mother who suffered from Alzheimer’s disease was left unclean and freezing cold in a room with open windows. Porter referred to the home as a “war zone,” adding that the staff at the were negative and the facility was overrun with concerning incidents. Porter said her mother “looked as if she was fading away, she seemed malnourished.”

The allegations date back to 2002, when Mitchell-Whiteford was named clinical manager. He claims the complaints stem from employees who resisted actions to improve the quality of care at the . The mental health nurse faces charges brought by the Nursing and Midwifery Council. Mitchell-Whiteford could be fired if found guilty of the actions. A hearing, which began late last month, has been scheduled to resume in September.

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