Care home is put into ‘special measures’
A CARE home where there were no locks on bedroom doors and residents weren’t always treated with dignity has been put in special measures.
Health and social care watchdog the Care Quality Commission uncovered a string of failings at Riverside Nursing Home, in Littleborough, Rochdale.
Inspectors found residents’ ‘privacy and dignity was being compro- mised... because people were being left in undignified situations.’
They witnessed one resident who was washed and given a change of clothes after having an accident while sat in a chair.
But inspectors wrote: “The chair and floor however were not cleaned before the person was repositioned in their urine covered chair. This did not protect their dignity or their well-being.
“Personal care was not effectively delivered, there was a lack of consideration for the environment that people lived in and there were no locks on bedroom doors.” Other criticisms included: The ‘majority’ of staff weren’t trained to care for people with dementia Fire doors didn’t fully close Medical waste wasn’t being properly disposed of
The patio area was ‘littered with cigarette ends and ‘very dirty’
Hot radiators and hot water pipes were unguarded and some windows were without restrictors, which ‘posed a serious risk of harm to people.’ The home now has six months to make improvements or the CQC has the power to close it down.
Riverside bosses described the findings as ‘upsetting’ but said the staff were now ‘working hard to resolve the issues identified.’
The Church Street home, which is owned by family firm Dentak Care and Services and at the time of inspection had 22 residents, was found to have suitable arrangements in place to safeguard residents from abuse, the medication system was said to be safe and specialised training was provided to ensure staff were able to care for people who were very ill and needed ‘end of life’ care.
Business manager Natasha Khan said: “Since the report we have gone from strength to strength. The silver lining in this is that it has got people feeling more driven to improve things. We have gone through the report, identified where the issues are and are working to improve.”