Windrush pensioner (97) with dementia died in pain after years of care home ‘neglect’

A woman who came to the UK as part of the Windrush generation has died after severely infected gangrene on her foot went untreated in a care home for more than a year.

Clementina Smith, 97, a resident of Murrayfield Care Home in north London, became ill with a painful illness that led to blood poisoning before relatives raised the alarm and was taken to hospital in November 2017.

In the letter he saw IndependentMurrayfield Nursing Home admits the sepsis was likely caused by gangrene that developed from a pressure sore on the foot that staff did not initially identify.

Mrs Smith died in June 2018 and an inquest found that the care home was partly responsible for her death due to negligence in care. This neglect contributed to the development of gangrene last year while she was still living there.

After moving home in 2013, Ms Smith’s family became concerned for her welfare when they noticed changes in her behavior and deteriorating hygiene, and then discovered rot on her left foot. They filed two police reports for neglect and alleged assault in 2014 and 2017 respectively.

“The house knew we would visit her on certain days. However, sometimes before the police reports, we would visit her outside the times they were used to us coming and we couldn’t believe her condition,” said Claudia Smith, Clementina’s granddaughter.

“We were initially concerned about her odor and the condition of her feet and it became clear that she was not being cared for to the standard we would have expected.

“As a family, we feel that our grandmother could not rest in peace as questions remained unanswered. We weren’t able to heal.”

The grandmother, who was also diagnosed with dementia, died eight months after leaving the nursing home. According to the draft protective report, she was also unable to eat until her death due to infected sores in her mouth that made it impossible for her to eat.

According to the coroner’s report, the official causes of death were erosive esophagitis and gangrenous foot ulcer.

Born in Jamaica, Mrs Smith emigrated to the UK in the 1960s as part of the Windrush mass migration from the Caribbean.

During visits to the nursing home, family members noticed that the elderly person was becoming more and more lonely.

Correspondence from the former management of Murrayfield Care Home confirmed that details of Ms Smith’s care had been incorrectly recorded.

The home has since changed management and is now run by Gold Care Homes.

Six years later, her family says justice has yet to be served and no accountability has been taken for her death.

“I feel emotionally exhausted. When my grandmother moved into this house, we expected her to take care of her. She paid for the service and we relied on the system to provide for the family as we all worked. “It’s very damning to be put in this situation, and to find out this was her fate is very depressing.”

After being discharged from hospital in December 2017, when doctors determined she would need palliative care, Mrs Smith moved into her daughter’s home, where she was cared for by her family. Klaudia told Independent that she quit her job and devoted her time to caring for her grandmother before she died eight months later.

“It is imperative that the British public become aware of the mistreatment of older people in care homes,” Claudia continued.

“There was no documentation of the severity of her injuries – she had nine life-threatening conditions and broken toes. The system failed her.

“My grandmother died a very painful death and her memory will never be the same. I am fighting for justice for her; you don’t put an elderly person in a home to go through this.”

The Metropolitan Police has confirmed it is investigating following complaints from a family that officers failed to respond to previous concerns.

According to the family, police are also investigating calls to prosecute care home staff for their mistreatment of Ms Smith.

The family also claims they saw injuries suggesting their grandmother had suffered physical abuse at the hands of staff.

Chief Superintendent Caroline Haines said: “The death of a family member is always a difficult time for everyone and the situation can only worsen if concerns arise about the treatment they received in the final years of their lives. We remain in contact with the family and continue to evaluate the allegations made against us.”

Following Mrs Smith’s death, an inquest was held and the coroner issued a Regulation 28 Prevention of Future Deaths report to the care home, which detailed numerous failures by the organization.

In addition to gangrene, it was determined that her death was also caused by several underlying diseases, including pneumonia and frailty in the elderly.

Mrs. Smith’s family is suing Four Seasons Health Care, which managed the home at the time of Mrs. Smith’s death.

Letter from the Four Seasons as seen by Independentadmits to failing to care for an elderly resident.

A spokesman expressed “regret” at the way staff treated Ms Smith and insisted they took the issues raised by the coroner “extremely seriously”, adding that an action plan had been immediately implemented and the system for reporting similar incidents had been improved.