One in four social care services fail safety inspections
ONE IN four social care services are failing on safety, the care regulator has said, as it was revealed that more than 1.2m people in England and Wales will suffer from dementia by 2040.
Analysis by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) shows that 23 per cent of care homes, nursing homes and home care services require improvement on safety while a further two per cent are inadequate.
Almost 20,000 people are cared for in the 343 services rated as inadequate.
Issues seen by inspectors include people being washed and dressed and then put back to bed to make it easier for staff to cope with them, residents not getting enough to eat and drink, and people not getting help to go to the toilet in time.
When it comes to nursing homes, which care for people with the highest level of need, one in three are failing on safety.
Inspectors also raised concerns about organisations slipping down the ratings, with a quarter of those last rated as good deteriorating since their last inspection.
Andrea Sutcliffe, chief inspector of adult social care at the CQC, said some of the issues raised by inspectors “have a profound impact on people’s lives”.
She added: “From a safety perspective, it may be: ‘Are there enough staff available to provide the care people need in their own homes?’
“If there is not, it may mean people have missed calls, people may be late to be supported to go to the toilet, to have the food and medication they need.
“These are things you do not want to be happening to your loved one or mum. If you’re in a residential or nursing home, it may be that there are not enough checks and balances in place to
ensure people are getting the right medication and the right support to eat and to drink.”
She said failing services do not always treat people with dignity and respect. A failure to carry out proper checks on staff and poor staff training had also been highlighted by inspectors. More than 21,000 adult social care services in England have been given a rating by the CQC in five areas: Safety, leadership, and whether a service is caring, effective and responsive to people’s needs.
Across these five indicators, 19 per cent of services require improvement, two per cent are inadequate, 77 per cent are good and two per cent are outstanding.
While most services are good and should be praised, Ms Sutcliffe said “nursing homes continue to be the worry area”, with only 67 per cent rated as good.”
Margaret Willcox, of the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS), said: “This report recognises that there is a lot of great care provided by committed leaders and staff.”
The news came as a separate report suggested people are living longer lives, which is fuelling a rise in the number with dementia. Researchers from University College London and the University of Liverpool used data to estimate that there were approximately 767,000 people sufferers in England and Wales last year. They predict this figure will rise to 872,000 in 2020, 1,092,000 in 2030 and 1,205,000 in 2040.