Patients neglected? Searches at care service
The Berlin public prosecutor's office is currently investigating a care service on suspicion of negligent homicide, dangerous bodily harm and abuse of wards. Almost 50 officers searched several of the company's properties on Wednesday, including two retirement homes and a doctor's practice in Lichtenberg and Prenzlauer Berg, as the public prosecutor's office announced in the afternoon. Numerous documents, including patient files, were confiscated, it said.
According to prosecutors, the investigation is directed against seven employees of the care service provider. The public prosecutor's office is investigating the suspicion that a total of 13 people in need of care may have come to harm in two of the company's facilities between the beginning of 2017 and the beginning of 2023. "Some of the elderly people in need of care are said to have become sore due to improper storage," it said. "For others, the wrong medication is said to have been administered or medication was discontinued by the nursing staff without authorization."
Investigators are also looking into two deaths in this context. In one of the cases, a 75-year-old woman suffocated because food had blocked her windpipe. The nursing staff had not reacted adequately.
According to the public prosecutor's office, the starting point for the investigations included several criminal complaints filed within a year. In addition, there were findings from another investigation against those responsible for the care service on suspicion of billing fraud.
The criminal complaints and the investigation into billing fraud uncovered potential issues within the nursing professions at the care service, leading to suspicions of negligent medication administration and improper patient care. Despite the dedicated roles of nursing professionals in ensuring patient well-being, it's alarming that some employees are accused of discontinuing medication without authorization or administering the wrong medication, potentially causing harm to vulnerable patients.
Source: www.dpa.com
