EXCLUSIVE: Hidden camera shows mistreatment at senior’s home
Posted February 1, 2012 6:01 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
A Markham woman is living a daughter’s worst nightmare after she uncovered what she claims was elder abuse of her mother at a senior’s home.
“I’ve always suspected some sort of neglect or abuse,” daughter Daniela Magarelli told CityNews.
Her 65-year-old mother Silvana is a resident at the Markhaven Home for Seniors in Markham.
“I was very frustrated, and I think your instinct just tells you something is wrong. Although my mom is partially blind, she can’t walk, she can’t speak [but] you could just tell from her demeanour in the morning. She would be so agitated. So you just know she was experiencing some sort of abuse”
Magarelli said when she went to visit her mother on Jan. 1, she noticed bruises on her forehead, underneath her chin, and on her shoulder.
She asked the staff for an explanation, but didn’t get one even after an investigation was launched.
Magarelli’s fears were confirmed after she installed an alarm clock with a hidden camera in her mother’s room.
The hidden camera footage revealed her mother was neglected, going unattended for long periods of time, and when staff would come in to change her in the night, they would often do so without properly washing her.
The incident that perhaps upset Magarelli the most was when footage revealed a personal support worker disconnecting her mother’s bed pad alarm at the start of her work day, and reconnecting it shortly before she left for the day. A bed pad alarm is a device in place for many dementia patients.
“It’s like a nightmare. You suspect things happen, but when you see it happen before your eyes, it’s heart wrenching,” Magarelli said.
Markhaven officials told Magarelli that employee has since been dismissed.
“We have taken action to address the situation, fairly prompt action,” Noreen Kallai, Executive Director, Markhaven Foundation told CityNews. “From our understanding, Daniela is satisfied with the follow-up that we have done…. We certainly strive for excellence in the deliverance of care, and we’re disappointed in ourselves if at any time we fail to deliver that.”
Chris Winterburn of SEIU Local 1, who represented the worker, said in a statement that there is an ongoing investigation into this incident.
“We have a policy of zero tolerance on neglect of nursing home residents,” Winterburn said. “These matters need to be investigated fully and acted upon.”
With files from Melanie Ng
