Fife care home services told they must improve

STANDARDS: Two firms receive ‘weak’ grades following visit by inspectors

Two Fife home care services have been told to improve after inspectors flagged up “concerning” shortcomings.

Privately run Avenue Care Services and CarePlus were last year given “weak” grades for care and support by the Care Inspectorate.

The service provided by Avenue was described as “unsafe” by the watchdog after staff left a client’s home without checking on them, having had no answer at the door.

There had also been missed visits, which the inspectorate said could lead to clients missing out on meals and drinks, medications and not having toileting and washing needs met, compromising their dignity.

Staffing at Avenue was graded “satisfactory” but quality of management and leadership at the service was described as “unsatisfactory”.

Inspectors assessed the service, which supports 190 people across west and central Fife, in July last year.

A total of six complaints were upheld by inspectors.

The Care Inspectorate said: “The service was unsafe, as on one occasion the staff did not take appropriate action to alert the management that they could not locate a person requiring care and support, so that urgent follow-up action could be taken.

“The service was unreliable, when on too many occasions people had unfamiliar staff providing their personal care, who did not know about their needs, or their ways, and when people felt uncomfortable receiving personal care from a stranger in their home.

“There were major, critical weaknesses in how the service had been led and managed. This had a significant negative impact on the quality of service people received.

“Urgent action should be taken by the service’s management to make sure that people receive safe, appropriate and responsive care and support.”

Councillors on South and West Fife area committee will discuss the performances of local care services when they meet on Wednesday.

The report to the committee also highlights failures at Dunfermlinebased CarePlus, where care and support, staffing and management were graded “weak” after an inspection in October.

Inspectors made a further unannounced visit to CarePlus in February, and noted that some progress had been made but more work had to be done around the monitoring of care notes.

The Care Inspectorate said: “At the time of inspection the service was subject to a large-scale investigation as a result of a number of concerns, including adult support and protection, staffing levels, and the management of the service.

“The service was working towards making improvements in these areas and had recently recruited to key leadership posts in the service.”