Daily Mail
December 6, 2013
Five nurses were today found guilty of neglect at a care home where malnourished pensioners lived on porridge and had pressure sores so deep that their bones were exposed.
The abuse came to light after five residents aged between 83 and 100 died in just two weeks at the scandal-hit Parkside House Nursing Home in Northampton.
Home manager Phyllis Johnson and nurses Anastacia Madulu, Girlie Franklin, Maria McKenzie, and Mary Ombui, were all found guilty of failing to provide basic care to ten residents between them.
Johnson was also found guilty of not reporting the deaths of three residents to the Care and Quality Commission, and failing to provide them nutritious meals and ensure staff were adequately trained.
The residents died at the site between July 22 and August 6, 2009, after being left malnourished, immobile in bed, and with putrid pressure sores, a hearing was told.
Concerns were first raised when an elderly woman was admitted to Northampton General Hospital on July 21, 2009 with severe pressure sores on her heels exposing her bones and tendons.
She was unresponsive and died the next day, exhibiting signs of dehydration and malnourishment.
Another resident with severe pressure sores died on the same day at the home, while three people were shipped out of the home over fears for their health.
The third vulnerable pensioner died in a community hospital on July 28 while two died in separate care homes on August 4 and 6.
Alzheimer’s sufferer Doreen Sheridan, 83, died on August 4 after contracting bronchopneumonia which doctors said was caused by a lack of movement.