MORE families have come forward with concerns about care at a Bedminster residential home.
The relatives of vulnerable elderly residents at Honeymead in West Street have raised concerns about hygiene and cleanliness, standards of care and items going missing from the rooms of residents.
As previously reported in the Post, Bristol City Council's safeguarding team has been working with Avon and Somerset Police's public protection unit to investigate claims about the care home.
Sandra Hughes, whose 83-year-old mother Kathleen Wiltshire is a resident, raised concerns with the manager of the home about cleanliness and standards of care.
She claims there was mould growing on a cup her mother was given and raised issues about a pressure sore.
"My mother is supposed to be turned every hour but I don't think they can be doing that, as she has a massive bed sore," the 53-year-old said.
"My mum has vascular dementia and cannot do anything for herself and we haven't been happy about the care at Honeymead for some time.
"The manager reported mum's bed sores to the council.
"But she cannot drink unless anyone helps her, so someone should have noticed that there was mould on the cup. I told them that if I could have pushed my mother home in her bed I would."
Her sister, Rozlyn Doherty, who visits their mum most days, said the family had made several complaints to Mimosa, which runs Honeymead.
She said: "I would love to move my mum but she is too frail."
Christine Dunn, of Clevedon, reported concerns about Honeymead after relatives moved into the Bedminster home in 2006.
Her mother, Ellen Newton, moved into the home in the January along with her sister, Irene Mountstevens.
Mrs Newton was only at the home for a few months before she passed away, while her sister was there until she died in October 2007.
Mrs Dunn, 65, said that she noticed some of her mother's clothes went missing while she was in Honeymead, particularly new nightwear and that a gold necklace of her aunt's also disappeared. Mrs Dunn continued to visit her aunt at Honeymead after her mother passed away.
"Some of the things that happened I thought were just awful. She had been blind since her 20s and was hard of hearing but a relative was in the bathroom when they put food on the table for her and did not let her know they were there."
Mrs Dunn said that on another occasion her aunt slipped and broke her hip and was sent to hospital on her own.
"They sent a blind person on her own in an ambulance without a carer," Mrs Dunn said. "And her family was not informed until about three hours after it happened.
"When these things happened to mum and my aunt I thought it was just a one-off. But I wish they had never gone in there."
The Post has previously reported the concerns raised by four other families about care at the home and the police confirmed they were investigating matters.
A spokeswoman for the local authority said: "The council is continuing to co-operate with the police to investigate allegations of theft at Honeymead care home.
"Ensuring providers deliver quality care is a priority for the council and we are working closely with Mimosa, the care provider, and the NHS, to see how the quality of care at Honeymead can be improved."
People with concerns can call Care Direct on 0117 922 2700.
A spokesman for Mimosa Healthcare, which runs Honeymead, said the company was co-operating with the ongoing investigations and could not comment further on the matter.
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