Home didn’t report harm, despite advice

KNOWN bashings at a scandal-hit aged-care home needed to be reported to police and a federal agency, according to confidential legal advice.

KNOWN bashings at a scandal-hit aged-care home needed to be reported to police and the federal agency, according to strongly worded legal advice provided confidentially to Baptist group executives in December.

But no reports were made at the time and no effective plans were immediately put in place, leading to a further bashing in January at the Kepnock Grove home in Bundaberg, about 400km north of Brisbane.

The failure of local managers at the Baptist Community Servic­es-owned aged-care home to report multiple assaults was identified in a limited internal probe by senior management in December. The findings of this probe — which identified other problems, including untreated injuries, suspicious deaths, falsified documents, the rationing of food and general neglect — prompted the group to instruct lawyers.

The group decided it would not meet its legislative mandatory reporti­ng requirement to alert police and the Department of Social­ Services, according to insiders­, who accuse executives of mounting a deliberate cover-up.

The Baptist group, which took Supreme Court action last week to prevent The Australian from reporting on the matters, threat­ened fines of $1 million and demanded to know the identity of confidential sources, says it is “deeply sorry” for letting residents down with poor care, but denies trying to conceal the cases.

In the leaked legal advice, provided by solicitor Julie McStay of Hynes Legal, chief executive Jon Campbell was told that cases of assault “need to be reported to both the police and the (department)”.

In cases involving a perpetrator with a cognitive impairment, such as dementia, a report is not mandatory if two other crit­eria were met: that “a behaviour-management strategy was implemented within 24 hours after the assault; and the diagnosis and plan are noted in the resident’s care plan”. Neither of those criteria was met.

The department says the framework is meant to ensure that “the victim of the alleged or suspected assault has received appropriate care and support, residents are safe, compulsory reporting requirements are complied with”.

Mr Campbell has insisted that “in no way have we been party to a cover-up, or any failure of our reporting responsibilities”. But two former managers, who he said had been referred to the Health Ombudsman in Queensland for their alleged negligence, were referred for the first time this week.

The group’s spokesman James Woods said: “We considered the advice that was obtained from our lawyers and acted appropriately. We have complied with all of our reporting obligations in relation to resident-to-resident physical aggression.”