SHOCKING ABUSE AT ROCHDALE NURSING HOME: CARERS JAILED FOR TORTURING DEMENTIA PATIENTS
Two care workers, Shauna Higgin and Victoria Johnson, who were involved in tormenting residents with dementia by abusing their 'comfort dolls' have been detained.Higgin, aged 20 from Middleton, was sentenced to 13 months in a young offender institution, while Johnson, aged 23 from Oldham, received a 12-month jail term.
Both confessed to two counts of ill treatment of residents at Ashbourne House Nursing Home in Middleton, Rochdale, last year.
The pair shared videos and images of themselves harming the therapy dolls, which are used as a therapeutic aid by residents.
During the court proceedings, Judge Andrew Lowcock described the offenses as "cruel" and said: "You treated [residents] as playthings, as the butt of your tasteless jokes." One incident involved Higgin pulling a doll from an elderly woman, who tried to hold on to it.
The pictures released showed Higgin and Johnson in the act of abusing the dolls, and one caption noted that Higgin was filmed throwing a doll on the floor and shouting "Die baby.
Die." The court also saw images of the dolls being hung by their necks, placed in a tumble dryer, a cooking pot, submerged in a fish tank, and dragged along a corridor.
The abuse was reported when a whistleblower provided evidence to police, leading to police investigation in January.
The nursing home has been under special measures after being rated inadequate by the Care Quality Commission earlier this year.
The CQC expressed satisfaction with the court’s decision, emphasizing that abuse or neglect towards vulnerable members of society would not be tolerated.
The home, operated by Silverdale Care Homes Limited, has so far remained unavailable for comment.
Two counts of wilful neglect or ill treatment will be recorded against the offenders in official records.
