Claims that three NHS staff assaulted “vulnerable” patients at a hospital in east London have been passed to prosecutors, Scotland Yard has said.
Patients at Whipps Cross University Hospital in Leytonstone were alleged to have suffered “physical and verbal abuse”, Barts Health NHS Trust said.
The healthcare assistants have been suspended and cannot work elsewhere in the health service in the meantime.
The Metropolitan Police said they had been bailed until Friday.
The claims emerged between mid-February and mid-April, the trust said.
The staff had been working on Beech Ward, which was a specialist unit for the elderly but has been converted to a general admissions department since the allegations were made.
Response ‘appropriate’
The Care Quality Commission, which regulates social care in England, was asked to inspect the hospital in June as a result of the claims of assault.
Its subsequent report found Whipps Cross had “responded appropriately to the allegation of abuse” and had acted correctly in checking the “quality and safety” of Beech Ward.
An internal investigation has been launched at the hospital.
Scotland Yard said three people were arrested “on suspicion of common assault on a number of elderly patients” and were due to report to a police station next Friday.
“All three remain on police bail while a decision is made by the Crown Prosecution Service regarding any charges,” a spokesman added.
No further details have been made public about the staff under scrutiny or precisely when they were arrested.
A Department of Health spokesman said it was aware of the police investigation.
The spokesman added: “We have been very clear that we expect all patients to receive safe, high quality care and to be treated with dignity and respect.”
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-18943757
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