CARE WORKERS JAILED FOR DRAG LIFTING ELDERLY WOMAN IN HALIFAX CARE HOME
A mental health nurse and care assistant have been sentenced after being caught "drag lifting" a frail 85-year-old woman across her room after her son planted a secret camera in her room.A judge at Bradford Crown Court watched the distressing footage on Friday which also showed the victim being left in her urine-stained bed in a Halifax care home.
Prosecutor Wayne Jackson said on December 1, 2018, the man had visited his mother, who suffered from dementia and mobility problems, and found her lying in a urine-soaked bed still in her clothes from the day before.
When he checked the camera footage it showed nurse Mamello Herring and care worker Maria Jackson “drag lifting” his distressed mother back to her bed from the toilet area.
The method involves someone putting a hand or arm under the person’s armpit and can result in injuries to those involved.
The court heard that when the pair were questioned, Herring said she knew that “drag lifting” was not permitted because it was unsafe and she had been taught that in training sessions.
Herring, 55, of Rossefield Place, Bramley, pleaded guilty to a charge of ill treatment by a care worker, which can carry a maximum sentence of five years in jail.
The pair were sentenced at Bradford Crown Court on Friday, with Herring given an 18-month community order and told to do 250 hours unpaid work for the community.
Jackson, 41, of Lane Ends Terrace, Hipperholme, pleaded guilty to common assault and also received an 18-month community order, with 180 hours unpaid work.
The Recorder of Bradford Judge Richard Mansell QC stated that “drag lifting” was specifically excluded because it was potentially unsafe and the indignity it involved.
He said, “I totally reject any suggestion that either of you were not sufficiently trained or experienced to understand that,” and noted the abuse was a “gross failure” to care for their resident.
The judge explained that the resident, found by her son in urine-soaked clothing, had been treated with neglect and that if proper procedures had been followed, care would have taken up to half an hour involving careful lifting and settling.
He condemned the actions as “a gross negligence” and said they treated the resident “like an object.” The son, who saw the footage, expressed regret that the case took so long but appreciated some closure.
Despite suspension from the nursing register, Herring had continued working in care, and Jackson had been working in kitchens at other care homes during the Covid pandemic.
Herring expressed remorse and shame for her conduct, while Jackson’s barrister highlighted her inexperience and regret.
Judge Mansell emphasized the seriousness of their wrongdoing, condemning it as lazy and sloppy negligence that violated the trust and dignity owed to the vulnerable resident.
