The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Care home’ s laundry was substandard
AForfar home specialising in dementia care has been told to clean up its act after inspectors discovered Covid-19 infection risks.
Care Inspectorate officials turned up at Benholm Nursing Home unannounced on March 26 to assess the quality of care and support during the pandemic.
While recognising both residents and families gave them positive feedback, the watchdog criticised cleaning and bathing practices as well as PPE disposal.
The report states dirty and clean washing were carried in the same laundry bags at the 41-bed Glamis Road premises without adequate disinfection.
It says: “We saw that systems of managing dirty and clean laundry were not safe, with the same receptacles being used for both and not sufficiently cleaned in between use.
“This increased the risk of cross infection.
“The washing machines were not being used in a way which achieved a temperature of at least 65 degrees.
“This meant that we could not be sure that thermal disinfection for used or contaminated laundry was taking place.”
Some reusable bedpans were dirty and “visibly soiled”, it also added.
Inspectors found that despite regular deep cleaning, staff did not have access to the required chlorine-based cleaning products. PPE, though adequate, was not being disposed of correctly at times, officials said.
Inspectors also said the “dignity, comfort, and skin” of residents was put at risk by a failure to understand individuals’ needs and preferences.
In a previous inspection in January 2020, the home had been rated “good” or “adequate” in all areas and had not been rated weak in any for eight years.
In the latest evaluation, infection control practices as well as care and support during the pandemic were branded weak.
Safeguarding of health and wellbeing were rated adequate, as were staffing arrangements.
The mansion house, run by Tamaris, offers residential care for those who need help with daily tasks, as well as residential dementia care.
It also provides nursing care for people with complex medical needs and 24-hour specialist nursing dementia care.
Parent company Four Seasons Health Care says it is working hard to improve in the areas highlighted.
A spokesperson said: “The Covid-19 pandemic has created immense challenges for all organisations in the health and social care sectors and we continue to strive every day to protect everyone in our homes.
“We regret Benholm Nursing Home has fallen below the standards the Care Inspectorate requires and we expect.
“Since the inspection we have been working to meet the areas for improvement identified in the report.
“We are pleased that the regulator recognised the many strengths of this home, including praising our highly skilled team members and their great efforts to keep residents engaged and supported throughout the pandemic and ensuring relatives were well informed.”