crime

Caregiver arrested for pouring boiling water on 96-year-old woman

19 Comments

Police in Hashimoto, Wakayama Prefecture, have arrested a 24-year-old male caregiver at a nursing home on suspicion of assault after a 96-year-old nursing home resident was burned by boiling water. 

According to police, the suspect, Yuta Kajibe, has admitted to the charge and quoted him as saying, “The woman was shouting and wouldn’t shut up, so I lost my temper.”

Police said the incident occurred on Jan 9 at the Green Garden Hashimoto long-term nursing home. Kajibe entered the woman’s room at around 1:20 a.m. and poured a cup of boiling water on her as she lay in bed.

The woman, who has advanced dementia, sustained severe burns on her lips, chin and chest. She is currently hospitalized at a nearby medical facility. 

On Jan 29, the nursing home’s chief director reported the incident to police and an investigation was immediately launched. After interviewing staff at the facility, police said Karibe admitted he was responsible for the woman’s injuries.

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19 Comments
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As far as I can tell carework is poorly paid for a tough job, so it only attracts the desperate, untrained, inexperienced, and clearly unsuitable. This is shameful.

-4 ( +7 / -11 )

what is wrong with people these days?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

As far as I can tell carework is poorly paid for a tough job, so it only attracts the desperate, untrained, inexperienced, and clearly unsuitable. This is shameful.

I have a relative who works as a caregiver in the UK and has done so for over 20 years. She is paid crap wages, has to clean up feces and urine and is sometimes physically and sexually assaulted by those she cares for. As part of her job she sees people die on a regular basis.

She loves her job. She isn’t and wasn’t desperate.

I think you should add that this job can attract a type of character that I know I, and I suspect you, wouldn’t get close to.

I don’t want to sound hostile here but I have to put in a word for the vast majority of people who do this job.

15 ( +16 / -1 )

@Jimizo - my apologies. You are quite right. I would replace the word "only attracts" in my first post with "can attract".

10 ( +10 / -0 )

Jimizo - my apologies. You are quite right. I would replace the word "only attracts" in my first post with "can attract".

Fair enough.

I’m sorry to drone on about this, but the implication that low paid jobs attract people more capable of doing horrible acts at work really gets me annoyed. There are people doing jobs up and down the pay scale doing awful things.

I want to see people doing a decent working week given a decent wage, and care workers certainly deserve a decent wage. The vast majority of people doing this job are fine people, and they could have it much easier doing jobs with much less stress at a the same or similar crap wage.

I understand that wages can sometimes be a reflection of ability and hard work, but I don’t think they are usually a reflection of the morality or length of fuse of the worker.

Sorry, bit of a rant but this one does get my back up.

9 ( +10 / -1 )

Being a caregiver is like being a teacher or even a parent, utmost patience is required. I am curious about the training this person had before starting this job.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

@Jimizo - you have made clear an excellent point. There are people who are unsuited to their job at every level. It is those jobs where such people have regular access to the young, elderly, weak and vulnerable, and are meant to care for them but harm them instead, that get the most negative publicity. The individual is blamed more than the whole system, and unthinking people like me tar them all with the same brush.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Those working with vulnerable people and children need to be checked before given employment. These checks are mandatory in the UK and elsewhere, why not here. It doesn't weed out all the scum, but it reduces the risk and stops them being employed in similar positions elsewhere.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

I did the same kind of work for a few years after my retirement from the military back in the day. It was a very high stress, often thankless job, but I never had any desire to harm any of the people I helped care for.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

There are two basic problems in this specific case:

1 the fact it happened

2 that it happened Jan 9th & was reported Jan 29th!!!!!!

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

I'm sure that less than ideal treatment, even if not actual abuse, is very common. It should go without saying that scalding is criminal assault.

I suppose the most important thing is to set up safeguards in care homes to minimize maltreatment. 24 is young for a care giver, and if this was a resident known to be difficult, it would be irresponsible for them to expose an inexperienced staff member to her on his own. We don't know the back story of course, so this is conjecture, but there are plenty of cases where abuse becomes systematic due to poor practices.

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

I'm lucky my mother-in-law is in a care home and I visit regulaly. but all the staff are wonderful. I think it's just bad luck.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

This is unforgivable. It can be very frustrating dealing with the elderly, but punishment on them is never effective. I hope Karibe reflects deeply on this horrible incident.It could be him when he is 96.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

24 is young for a care giver

No, it isn't.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

A 24y,o male is different to a female doing this same kind of work.

This guy obviously failed at all other attempts to get a decent job and has an attitude/people problem and had to take this job as a last resort which we can clearly seen he hasn't the patience or the mental stability (probably not certified) to be professional.

-5 ( +0 / -5 )

In Japan, if he's a qualified fukushi-shi, you qualify at the earliest around 21. It's a two-year full-time course at senmon-gakko. It now takes a bit longer because there is an exam after senmon gakko. They used to give you the certificate for graduating the course, but not any more.

Care homes employ unqualified people as helpers, but not kids straight out of school.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

If she has dementia, shouting and not shutting up is part of the deal in some cases. Surely he was trained to recognize that. Not sure how he can be called a 'caregiver'. If it was your own granny who he did this to, how would you feel? She made it to 96 only to have some unqualified, inhumane idiot scald her with boiling water.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

It's a tough but important job. We need more training programs for those who need.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

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