A FRAIL 92-year-old was left waiting 17 hours for medical treatment after she fell out of her care home bed, claims her daughter.

MaryLench has not returned to Beech House, in Brownlow Bend, Basildon, since she was admitted to Basildon Hospital after the accident two months ago.

Daughter Shirley Roome, who is a nurse at Basildon Hospital, has raised concerns about the level of care her mum received at Beech House – a Christian care home.

She visited her mum on the morning of December 5 and demanded staff phoned an ambulance after she discovered Mrs Lench with facial injuries – 17 hours after her fall.

She had a black eye and unexplained bruises were discovered on her body, including one at the top of her arm. Mrs Roome, of Broomfields, Pitsea, said: “You can’t afford to make mistakes when you are working with elderly people.

“The care is normally good from the morning until about 2pm, but after that there are fewer staff and they just don’t seem to be caring enough.”

On a previous occasion Mrs Roome found her mum wearing a bra two sizes too small, which belonged to another resident.

She also learnt her mum, who moved into 28-bed Beech House two years ago, had been left unattended when using a commode in her room.

Mrs Roome confronted staff at Beech House, who, she said, told her “mistakes do happen”.

Following her fall, Mrs Lench has been unable to walk or feed herself.

She is now undergoing rehabilitation at Brentwood Community Hospital while her daughter finds alternative care home accommodation.

Mrs Roome said: “Before mum had her fall she could walk with a frame, but now she is too frail.

I hope, with some rehabilitation, we can get her back on track.

“There is no way I am sending her back to Beech House and I’m a bit concerned about sending her to another care home.

“I can’t send her somewhere I don’t feel comfortable.”

The manager at Beech House says staff there did all they could to help Mrs Lench.

Michael Olaniyan insisted staff immediately contacted a GP after noticing Mrs Lench’s black eye on the morning of December 5, but until then she was conscious and stable following her fall.

He also said hourly observations were carried out through the night. It was also revealed the carer who dressed Mrs Lench in the incorrect bra was given a verbal warning and further training to ensure the incident was not repeated.

He said Beech House used “body maps” to record injuries, and the bruise on her arm was highlighted by staff as unexplained red marks.

Mr Olaniyan said: “Beech House successfully cared for Mrs Lench, who was a very frail elderly person, for two years.

“As we do with all our residents, we continually worked in partnership with the family, friends and advocates to ensure we provided person-centred care.

We addressed any concerns or issued raised for the benefit of the loved ones.We have all the written evidence and notes regarding the incidents and the meetings had with the family.

“We feel we have endeavoured to work closely with members of the family, who themselves have conflicting views about the care of Mrs Lench.

“They are a very caring family.

However, we are disappointed Mrs Roome made such observations, as we feel from the bottom of our hearts that we have done our very best to care for the holistic needs of Mrs Lench.