PATIENTS TO MOVE AS HOSPITAL CLOSES FOLLOWING INSPECTION
Care facility has axed inpatient services
RESIDENTS at a facility which cares for adults with learning disabilities have been told they have to move out.
The Woodhouse Independent Hospital, in Cheadle, is closing following a critical inspection report.
Inspectors from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) rated the service as ‘inadequate’ in a report published last week. Now Elysium Healthcare, which runs The Woodhouse, has confirmed it has axed inpatient services.
The company says it will work with residents and their families to relocate them.
It said the Cheadle facility would ‘continue to serve the community with a new focus’ – although it has not clarified what that means.
CQC inspectors previously identified ‘significant concerns’ with staff conduct towards service users and ‘inappropriate and disproportionate use of restraint’.
It visited The Woodhouse in March to follow up on concerns identified at a previous inspection but found that, rather than improving, standards at the facility had fallen further.
Their report rated safety and care at the hospital – which provides care for residents under 65 who have learning disabilities or autism – as inadequate.
A spokesman for Elysium Healthcare said: “We fully acknowledge the shortcomings identified in the Care Quality Commission’s latest inspection report, which fall below our own high standards.
“As a result, we have decided we will no longer provide inpatient services for people with learning disabilities and autism from this site.
“This move is in keeping with the Government’s Transforming Care Agenda which is focused on helping people with learning disabilities and autism live meaningful lives, in the community, close to home.
“We will be working closely with the people in our care, their families, and all our stakeholders to help people relocate to suitable services across the UK, close to family and friends.
“We will be working with our commissioning partners to identify the unmet care need in the local area so we can ensure The Woodhouse continues to serve the community with a new focus.”