I’ve always been a bit doubtful about whether the human
rights law can be used on behalf of older people (or anyone else) where there
are problems with care services. But a new and rather trenchant pamphlet from
the Equality and Human Rights Commission gives advice, probably based on some
cases they have helped with.
What’s particularly intriguing about this is that it’s about
home care, where the services are delivered to your home. It’s a bit more
obvious that when you are in care home, because it’s someone else’s property
and you are probably more disabled or frail than if you are in your own home, you
are more likely to have your rights curtailed. But of course people giving you
more or less the same care in your own home have more chances to interfere with
your private life and are less likely to be observed by someone else doing so.
The pamphlet deals with several of the human rights
enshrined in the law, and here are some examples of what it says. Anyone who
works in the care services knows that some of these things happen, because of
financial pressures and sheer lack of consideration. It’s not that I think
people using care services should be going to law all the time, but I do think
we should be thinking much more clearly about what our rights are. We can be
grateful, but we don’t have just to
be grateful; we are entitled to get appropriate help too.
You can see from the dots that I've edited this - there's a whole lot of useful information in the pamphlet.
Article 2 “Right to life”
Public authorities must not place your life in danger. If
someone dies as a result of consistently poor treatment by care workers, this
may be a breach of their right to life under Article 2. It may also be a
criminal offence.
Public authorities must also act to ensure your life is
protected. For example, councils must ensure your care package gives you enough
support for your assessed needs…If a care worker does not raise concerns about
a serious deterioration in someone’s health and this contributes to that
person’s death, this could also be a breach of the person’s right to life.
Article 3 “No one shall be subject to inhuman or degrading treatment”
Depending on the circumstances,
examples of inhuman or degrading treatment by care workers could include:
repeatedly failing to change your soiled clothes or bed sheets if you are
incontinent not providing you with enough food or water failing to wash you
over a prolonged period if you cannot wash yourself if you are bed bound, not
moving you over a prolonged period so you get severe bed sores using excessive
force to restrain you.
Only the most serious cases of poor treatment will be
considered a breach of this right. However, other cases may still count as a
breach of your right to a private and family life, home and correspondence.
Article 5 “Right to liberty and security”
You have the right not to have your liberty taken away from
you. You should be free to leave and return to your home at will. You should
not be prevented from leaving or returning to your home by other people.
Care workers should not lock you inside your home.
They should not stop you from going outside because you have
a tendency to fall or if you might get confused. To do so could be a breach of
your right to liberty and security.
Article 8 “Right to a private and family life, home and correspondence”
You should be able to live your life as you choose. It is
your right to request care workers leave your post unopened or leave you to
take a phone call in a different room if you wish...
...when care workers are helping you to wash, you can very reasonably ask
them to close the curtains, close the bathroom door or place a towel over you
to protect your modesty.
If you cannot live with your family you should be allowed to
have regular contact with them. For example, if your spouse is moving to a care
home because it is unsafe for him or her to live at home, the council should
not place your spouse in a care home far away, where you would not be able to
visit them. In offering your spouse a care home placement, the council must
consider your rights to a family life and those of your partner.
Care workers turning up late, not carrying out all of the
tasks listed in your care plan or simply not carrying out tasks properly could
amount to a breach of your right to a private life.
Care workers must change what they do if you ask them to be
more careful, use disability equipment correctly, and not cause you discomfort
or pain. If they do not respond, they could be breaching your human rights.
You might prefer to have meals being delivered to you, a
laundry service, or door to door transport instead of a care worker. If you do
not want care workers to visit you at home, perhaps because you find it
intrusive, you do not have to accept this help.
Your care worker cannot make you wear items of clothing you
do not like or would not normally wear. Your care worker cannot make you wear
slippers on a shopping trip just because it is easier for them to put them on
instead of outdoor shoes. If you are stopped from wearing clothing or jewellery
related to your religion, this could also count as a breach of your religious
freedom…
If care workers are visiting at inappropriate times to help
you, this undermines your right to control your day. For example, being put to
bed or being helped to eat too early or too late could be a breach of your
right to a private life. If care workers are visiting at irregular hours so you
cannot go out to visit friends or family, this could also infringe your right
to a family life.
Article 9 “Freedom of thought, conscience and religion”
…Care workers should be able to help you to practice your
religion. For example, if you wear a turban, hijab or a cross and chain because
of your religion, your care worker should help you to continue dressing in this
way. Likewise, if you follow a particular diet because of your religion, for
example, a halal, vegetarian or kosher diet, you should get meals that meet
these requirements.
Article 14 “Right not to be discriminated against in the way your human rights are protected”
Your human rights cannot be breached or enforced differently
because of your age, religion, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, political
beliefs or your disabilities. This right can only be used in connection with
another article set out in the Human Rights Act. For example, a Muslim does not
get halal meals, but his Jewish neighbour gets kosher meals from the same home
care agency. The Muslim man is being discriminated against in the enjoyment of
his right to practice his religion.
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