Burst
Written by: Wanting Yang
2021-04-24 19:36
Last update date: 2021-04-24 19:37
A murder in a nursing home occurred in Tuen Mun. The eighty-year-old man who had been bedridden for a long time was found unconscious, with blood on his face and bruises on his eyes. The rescue was ineffective after being sent to the hospital. Police investigation revealed that a 70-year-old male resident had entered the dead room twice , Once holding a sharp weapon, arrested him.
It is understood that the arrested residents have been plagued by Parkinson's, delusions and hallucinations for many years; and the deceased living in the single room, apart from being incapable of taking care of themselves, being bedridden for a long time and receiving comprehensive care, also suffered from dementia.
The elderly industry pointed out that this incident was a tragedy and the police are still investigating the cause of the attack.
However, there are many elderly people with dementia in nursing homes. They may have symptoms such as nuisance behaviors, hallucinations, and even acute mental health problems, which are unpredictable, and it is difficult for the staff to stay by for a long time. The situation may not be detected in time.
A murder occurred in an elderly home in Tuen Mun.
(Photo by Yang Jialang)
After preliminary investigation by the police, it is believed that the deceased had not argued or clashed with the arrested man, and should not be able to resist when attacked.
The police are still investigating the cause of the attack on the deceased, and are following the investigation of the relationship between the two and the physical and mental condition of the arrested man.
Chen Zhiyu, chairman of the Hong Kong Association for Elderly Services, said that many elderly homes for the elderly in Hong Kong take care of many elderly people with dementia. When the elderly have abnormal emotions or behaviors, or have physical collisions with other residents, the staff will follow up immediately. In the future, social workers will also actively intervene and understand the situation of the elderly, and contact their family members to decide whether to seek medical assistance. Because some serious people may experience symptoms such as nuisance behavior and hallucinations, they may need to rely on drugs to stabilize their condition.
However, sometimes the elderly will have acute mental health problems, which cannot be prevented, and it is difficult for the staff to pay attention to the situation of each inmate for a long time, so it may not be able to detect emergencies in time.
Chen Zhiyu believes that this case is a tragedy, and the deceased in the case has been bedridden for a long time, unable to express himself, and receiving high levels of care. He may not have any motivation to be attacked, so he should understand the mental condition of the arrested person at the time of the incident.
According to the SWD, the residential care home at No. 11 Tsing Chui Path, Tuen Mun where the murder occurred is a private care and attention home that can provide 87 non-subsidized places.
Chen Zhiyu pointed out that care and attention homes provide moderate care. However, the health of some residents has been deteriorating after being admitted to the homes. However, even if their health deteriorates, they will rarely be transferred to nursing homes that provide more advanced care. Only 10% of homes for the elderly are nursing homes, which is a small number.
According to information from the SWD, the above-mentioned homes for the elderly had 4 convictions in December 2019 and December 2020 respectively. The crime was a violation of Article 11(1) of the Regulations on Homes for the Elderly, “Insufficient Employment”.
Chen Zhiyu said that the manpower arrangement of residential care homes for the elderly is extremely important. If the manpower is insufficient, the service will be affected.
However, the problem of manpower shortage is a common problem faced by the entire elderly industry and is not unique to individual homes. Moreover, this problem is complex and involves a wide range of aspects.
For example, he pointed out that the problem of insufficient manpower is particularly serious during the epidemic.
Residential care homes for the elderly have always relied on hiring "spread" and "replacement" employees to fill some of the vacancies. During the third wave of the epidemic, many homes for the elderly broke out. The hospital was worried that casual workers would "go around". Different institutions will spread the virus later, and the employment of the relevant staff has to be suspended, making the shortage of hand even more serious.
Homicide case in residential care for the elderly｜The deceased’s eyes were swollen and bleeding. The suspect entered the deceased’s room twice and inspected scissors
80-year-old male inmate in Tuen Mun Nursing Home for the Elderly
murder
