A businesswoman has hit out at the quality of care at an under-fire care home.

Tarnia Harrison's brother Terry Raymond lived at Little Oyster on The Leas, Minster, Sheppey, until February this year when he died, aged 41.

Mrs Harrison, who runs JN Clearance, has spoken after the Care Quality Commission put the venue into special measures and labelled it "inadequate".

She said: "I am relieved that finally something is being done to help the residents in the Little Oyster.

"I have read the CQC report and all my fears were confirmed that he was not alone in the way he was treated in there. I just wish authorities had listened and taken action a lot sooner.

"In my opinion this is the most comprehensive investigation the Little Oyster has received in a long time."

She says she was raising concerns since September 2020.

She said: "My brother's care was part-funded by the local authorities and amounted to more than £1,300 a week. Yet we supplied food, drinks and bottled water to refill his ventilator.

"We also provided suitable cups for him to drink from."

She said the family also provided rise and recline chairs, one for his room and one for the lounge, as "no suitable chairs" were available for him.

She added: "We also provided a table for his room as he did not have one."

She said her brother suffered from learning disabilities and a rare condition called myotonic dystrophy.

She said: "I was watching my brother fade away. His needs, both medically, physically and mentally, were not being met and I was powerless to stop it. I watched my brother deteriorate rapidly over a five-month period."

She said he had been a "polite and happy man" who loved to help others and even volunteered at the Blackburn Lodge care home in Sheerness for 20 years until his condition no longer allowed him to do so.

She claimed her brother had suffered 10 falls in five months at the home including one on February 7. He was taken to hospital that day and died in the early hours of February 8.

Mrs Harrison said: "I was fighting for his life for months before his death and no one helped. I am still fighting for him as I feel like I let him down. I will not let him down again."

An inquest has been opened and adjourned.

A spokesman for the home said it would not respond formally while the inquest was "still active" but pointed out the Little Oyster had been rated "good" by the CQC at its inspection in April.

He said all food and drink was supplied by the home but families were allowed to take in additional "treats" and all crockery and cutlery was provided although some residents preferred to use their own.

He said the chair brought for Mr Raymond had come from his previous flat and the home provided a table in every bedroom.

The home disputes the number of falls Mr Raymond suffered. A source at the home said the family had been given the option for Mr Raymond to leave in October but had declined.

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