Decision Report 201401468

Summary

Mr C complained that the board had not been able to evidence or explain the decision to regard his mother-in-law as not suitable for continuing care. There had been protracted correspondence between Mr C and the board, however, he remained of the view that the board could not document their decision.

Our investigation, which included taking independent advice from one of our medical advisers, found that Mr C had been provided with all the available medical records relating to his mother-in-law. These medical records showed that Mr C had been invited to participate in the meetings between medical and social work staff at which they decided to transfer his mother-in-law to social care. Mr C had declined to participate in these and declined to pursue legal guardianship for his mother-in-law. The guidance in force at the time did not require the board to provide Mr C with a written decision or reasons for their decision. We found the evidence showed the family were aware that Mr C's mother-in-law would be transferred to social care and that they understood the decision. There was no evidence they had objected to it at the time.