Care quality


staff as people do not like the thought of being monitored and recorded during the course of their work.


The other consideration was the cost of installing and maintaining the cameras, which was not insignificant. We balanced these negatives against the benefits they could bring to safeguarding vulnerable people and decided that we should proceed, albeit not without some concern for the consequences, so we cautiously dipped our toe in the water.


Little cameras and how we use them


CCTV cameras have been installed in all communal rooms, corridors and gardens. Cameras are never installed in or close to bedrooms or bathrooms. They are small, unobtrusive and provide only the coverage required for the intended purpose and thus the number of cameras are minimised, as shown in this image of one of our lounges.


Marbrook’s cameras operate all of the time and footage is retained for approximately four to six weeks before being overwritten. In specific circumstances, footage relating to an event can be saved indefinitely. Screens are never used to monitor CCTV live unless linked to an immediate concern. In this instance, only the head of IT can provide access to live footage with the permission of the chief operating


on CCTV


officer. Screens showing live footage in nursing or managers office may, in our opinion, lead to management by screen as a replacement for walking around and managing in person.


Any historical recordings for investigation purposes require the permission of the general manager. That is to ensure the preservation of privacy and dignity of residents and staff as much possible and to ensure that the use of cameras is confined strictly to its intended purposes.


CCTV serves a number of purposes at Marbrook as follows:


Incident as reported Incident as shown Action taken as a result on form


of CCTV review ‘Resident A ‘pushed over by ‘Mrs. A’ tripped,


‘Resident B’ (dementia service). ‘Mr. B’ came along and ‘Mrs. A’ was found on floor with ‘Mr. B’ standing over her.


tried to help ‘Mrs. A’.


l Security: CCTV acts as a deterrent to would be intruders etc.


l Accidents & incident reviews: enabling a full examination of events surrounding incidents and accidents and verification of information submitted on incident/accident forms (only used in cases of uncertainty or controversy).


l Quality audits: Conducted at agreed intervals (currently no more than once a fortnight). These are undertaken by a manager outside of the care management structure and reported to the care management team via a


Action likely taken without CCTV


Examination of ‘Mrs. A’s’ footwear found Report to the local safeguarding authority that slippers were very loose-fitting. More appropriate footwear was purchased.


that an assault may have occurred. Inform relatives that an assault may


have occurred thus raising anxieties. Increase supervision of ‘Mr. B’ in case he assaults others.


Resident collapsed and ambulance called. Hospital found toxic substance in blood, possibly an illegal substance. This resident was a young person with a significant spinal injury and paralysed from the neck down.


‘Mr. A’, who lives with dementia, was found to have significant,


unexplained fresh bruising to his knees and forehead and could not tell us what had happened to him.


Friend visited an hour before the incident, bringing substance in a travel cup. With the use of a straw he was seen in the communal lounge giving his friend a drink from the cup.


On the balance of probability, it was concluded that the resident’s friend had brought in a substance that harmed the resident. Appropriate authorities were informed, including safeguarding team. The resident made a full recovery from this episode and when questioned by police admitted that his friend had supplied him at his own request.


Earlier that day, ‘Mr. A’ fell in the corridor whilst unsupervised. He fell on to his knees and hit his head on the wall, he then got up and continued walking.


November 2020 • www.thecarehomeenvironment.com


First aid was administered and he was referred to our therapy team to explore the cause of his fall which they did by detailed examination of CCTV. It was concluded to be a one- off event and no further action recommended.


A full criminal investigation may have ensued with all staff on duty as potential suspects of causing intentional harm administering a toxic substance. Immediate suspension of five staff pending investigation.


A report to safeguarding would have been made. An investigation would have been implemented to try and conclude how the residents was harmed and if it was a result of neglect or abuse.


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