AN angry care user has hit out at council plans to transfer care work to private agency staff.
Kirkburton resident Karen Jones, who suffers with dystonia – a neurological muscle movement disorder – says she has been told private care agencies will be taking over the care work in the Dearne Valley area.
The move comes only a month after controversial changes to the home care service saw many people have their regular carer axed and replaced with a host of different workers.
Some care users reported they were being sent up to eight different carers a week following the changes.
Mrs Jones, 44, who requires help with washing, dressing and food preparation, said the development was very upsetting, coming only a few weeks after her regular carer been replaced without any consultation.
She said: “People haven’t been informed about this and no discussion has taken place with service users.
“I am very concerned for the other vulnerable, elderly, infirm and disabled people who live in my area, who are totally unaware that further changes are about to be implemented.
“Yet again nobody has been consulted about the changes and the first service users will know about it is when they receive another letter from Kirklees over the next few weeks.”
Mrs Jones said her own experiences since the changes had been far worse – she’d recently had seven different carers in a week – and each time she had to explain her particular requirements to them.
She added: “My feelings are the level of care has dropped. It’s been really difficult.
“The morale of the staff has been atrocious. They are all totally downhearted and feel that nobody listens to them.”
And Mrs Jones, who herself worked in the care industry for 20 years before her condition became too severe, said she was extremely upset that her personal and medical information may now be open to former colleagues in the private care sector.
But when she complained she was told the only option was to employ her own carer.
A Kirklees Council spokeswoman said: “We commission independent organisations to provide home care and also provide some specialist home care services ourselves.
“This means that people getting a home care service may get it from a home care worker employed by the council or by a home care worker employed by an independent organisation, we provide a service either from the council or an independent organisation depending on peoples’ needs.
“In order to ensure that we deliver support in the most effective way possible we do move some services into the independent sector.
“Before any changes take place we visit and discuss this with them. Standards for the delivery of services are set by the Care Quality Commission and the council monitors the standards of contracted services to ensure they are a high quality.
“All services are registered and inspected by the Care Quality Commission. Anyone concerned about their home care service can call us on 01484 223015.”
Following the Examiner’s intervention Kirklees Council has allowed Mrs Jones to keep her existing care package.
