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Wallasey care home boss banned from nursing for life



A Wallasey care home boss has been banned from nursing following the ‘wilful neglect’ of an elderly man in her care.

Belita Howell, ex-manager of Mother Redcap’s care home in Wallasey, ‘wilfully neglected’ 86-year-old dementia-sufferer Walter Witcherley and has been struck off the nursing register.

Mr Witcherley, who was in the advanced stages of dementia, was placed in a bed with no cot sides or working brakes – despite breaking his ribs in a fall just weeks before.

The pensioner then fell out of the ‘unsuitable’ bed, fracturing his hip and leg.

Following the death of Mr Witcherley, Howell “put pressure” on a maintenance man to alter his records to make it look like the bed had been repaired.

An investigation by the Nursing and Midwifery Council found that while Howell had a low risk of re-offending, she showed a “concerning” level of remorse and “limited insight”.

Some days before this fall, the council heard that various members of staff had made Howell aware that Mr Witcherley’s bed was unsuitable and that he was at risk.

The council concluded that the vulnerable patient had been left “at risk” with a long history of other falls.

They also noted that Howell had made “limited expressions of remorse” and had made no attempt at remediation.

A judge at Liverpool Crown Court, where Howell was found guilty of wilful neglect in 2013, described her actions as “a significant cover up” and she had “lied and sought to deflect blame.”

Howell, 58, who had been a nurse all her working life, denied wilful neglect and still denies it despite being convicted by the jury.

She was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment suspended for 24 months on November 7, 2013.

The panel concluded that Mrs Howell was “currently impaired on the grounds of public protection” as she still does not accept responsibility for the events surrounding the dementia-sufferer’s fall.

Mother Red Caps Home, Lincoln Drive, Wallasey, provides residential and nursing care for elderly people and has between 50 and 52 beds.

Source : Click Me

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What was her Defence then?