'If I assaulted an 86yo I'd be in jail right now'

A rest home worker convicted of assaulting an elderly dementia patient may face further legal action. In 2016 Sonali Ananta Deo was convicted and discharged at the Hamilton District Court of assaulting 86-year-old Piri Hemi at Cascades Retirement Resort. In a report out yesterday, Deputy Health and Disability Commissioner Rose Wall says she has referred Deo to the office's independent director of proceedings for possible further legal action. And she says Mr Hemi's family has received formal apologies for the way he was treated. Mr Hemi's son Allan told RNZ health correspondent Karen Brown the family has not had an apology. But he welcomes the possibility of more legal action against Sonali Deo.