Care home told to improve after falling ‘below standards’

CONCERNS OVER SAFETY AND STAFFING HAD BEEN RAISED BEFORE CQC INSPECTION

A BURTON care home inspected after concerns over safety and staffing has been told it needs to improve after accepting it “fell below” its usual high standards at the time of the visit.

Care home “50 Burton Road”, in Branston, has been rated as “requires improvement” after a visit from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) on August 10 and 11.

The home cares for up to six people with learning difficulties, and had five people living there at the time of the inspection. The findings of the report were published earlier this month.

After the previous inspection in March 2018 it had been rated as good but this inspection was carried out after concerns were raised about people’s safety and staffing and it was found that there had been a “deterioration” in the service, the report said.

As a result of the concerns, inspectors focused on whether the service was safe and being well-led during the visit, finding that both areas required improvement.

Antonella Oliver, managing director for Central East at Voyage Care, which is responsible for the home, said that changes were made immediately after the inspection and the team was confident the service has now returned to its previous high standards.

Issues found during the inspection included that quality assurance systems had failed to be fully implemented to ensure that care was sufficiently monitored.

The report said: “Risks were not always accurately assessed and planned for and people were not always protected. Care plans were not always fully reflective of people’s needs; however, staff knew people well.

“Some people had missed medical appointments as systems were not effective.

“Infection control measures were not always consistently applied which could pose a cross infection risk.”

During the first day of the inspection, staff were seen to not always be wearing PPE correctly, with masks on their chin or not over noses, which had been rectified on the second day, the inspector said in their report.

One person who was at risk of sun burn did not have sun screen applied on the first day and care plans were not always up to date.

The inspector also found that people were supported enough by staff but staffing levels varied.

Lessons were also learned when things went wrong and medicines were managed safely, with people protected from abuse.

The inspector did note that an action plan was in place and action had been taken.

Also they received positive feedback about how the home was being managed and people were supported to communicate in a way that suited them as some residents could not verbalise their needs.

Staff were also engaged in the service and relatives had said improvements had been made since the new registered manager started.

Ms Oliver said: “We are aware the focused CQC inspection was prioritised due to concerns raised late last year regarding safety and staffing.

“We investigated these concerns at the time and made a number of changes at the care home – including hiring a new manager and some new support staff at the start of this year.

“We accept the care and support delivered at 50 Burton Road fell below the high standards we expect of ourselves at the time of the CQC inspection.

“As noted in the report, we made several changes immediately and continue to pro-actively work on the areas for improvement.

“We are confident the service has now returned to our sectorleading standards.

“Our purpose is to provide great care and support, and we take our responsibilities to the people we support and their families extremely seriously.

“The new staff team has worked hard to make changes during an already challenging time and the safety of the people they support remains their top priority.”