Care home killing: Inspectors found resident safety fears

Eileen Dean (L) with her daughter Georgie Hampshaw

A watchdog found there were safety concerns at a south-east London care home weeks after a resident killed a woman in her bedroom, it has emerged.

Alexander Rawson, 63, beat 93-year-old Eileen Dean to death at Fieldside Care Home in Catford on 3 January.

During a visit three weeks later, inspectors concluded that the home failed to record dangers properly and residents "were not always safe".

The home has been contacted for comment.

Mrs Dean suffered catastrophic injuries after she was attacked by Rawson with a walking stick, about two weeks after he had been moved into the home from a mental health unit.

The 63-year-old was sentenced to indefinite detention in a secure psychiatric unit on Monday.

Ms Dean was beaten by Alexander Lawson in her room at Fieldside care home in January

Inspectors visited the care home on 26 January after the murder of the grandmother-of-five triggered alarm about patient safety.

The independent Care Quality Commission (CQC) report, published on 20 April, downgraded the care home from "good" to "requires improvement".

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the report said: "People were not always safe. The provider had not ensured risks to people were always documented and mitigated.

"Risk assessments and care plans contained conflicting information which could potentially lead to people being exposed to harm."

Specific concerns were also raised to the watchdog about the home's "risk management processes."

Fieldside Care Home was rated "good" by the Care Quality Commission prior to the killing

The CQC widened its investigation into the nursing home to look at general safety and management and found Fieldside Care Home required improvement in both areas.

Inspectors said some patients faced being abandoned in an emergency.

The CQC report said: "Several plans we reviewed stated people would need support of one staff to remain in their room in the event of an emergency.

"The staffing levels of two staff during the night would make this level of support impossible."

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Inspectors concluded: "The provider did not do all that was practicable to ensure that care and treatment was provided in a safe way as risks to people were not always identified and mitigated.

"The provider failed to assess, monitor and improve the quality and safety of the service effectively. The provider had failed to ensure people received a consistently safe service."

Rawson was sentenced to indefinite detention in a secure psychiatric unit

At the time of the report's publication, 34 elderly people were being looked after at Fieldside Care Home.

Mrs Dean's grieving family have been seeking answers about what happened. Her daughter, Georgie Hampshaw, previously said she could not understand how her mother had been the victim of what she called "a wicked and callous crime" in a care home.

South London and Maudsley NHS Trust said its investigation is still ongoing and is expected to be completed in the new year.