Care homes locking up old people to make life easier for staff Heather Hurford, the report's editor, said institutions were taking such actions simply in order to make lives easier for their own staff. She added: "When a care provider makes blanket use of restrictions it will be for the benefit of the care providers and not those receiving care. It can be a sign of poor staffing arrangements, poor training and a culture that puts the needs of the organisation over those of the individual. The report said restrictions were too often introduced automatically, without considering alternatives or any discussion with those involved. It added: "Some examples showed little or no evidence of any attempt to maximise a person's decision-making capacity before resorting to restriction or restraint." Previous research has found cases in which residents were locked in NHS wards and units and barred from socialising with friends, with one describing himself as being held "prisoner" in a nursing home. One man suffering from memory problems who was in hospital for four months wanted to leave, but wrongly believed he was being held under the Mental Health Act. The report, which examined more than 11,000 legal applications to restrict freedom of hospital patients and care home residents, warned of a "widespread misunderstanding" of the laws among the staff enforcing restrictions.