CQC takes action to protect people at Tyne and Wear care home
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has rated Addison Court in Crawcrook, Ryton, inadequate, and placed it in special measures to protect people following an inspection in November.
Addison Court, run by Malhotra Care Homes Limited, is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care to up to 70 older people, some of whom are living with dementia.
The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about staffing levels, moving and assisting people, recruitment, and management oversight.
Following the inspection, the overall rating for the home is inadequate, as well as the areas of safe, and well-led. Effective, caring, and responsive are rated requires improvement. The service was previously rated good overall, and for being safe, effective, responsive, caring, and well-led.
The service has been placed in special measures which means it will be kept under close review to make sure people are safe and, if CQC do not propose to cancel the provider's registration, there will be a re-inspection to check for significant improvements.
Linda Hirst, CQC deputy director of operations in the north, said:
“When we inspected Addison Court, it was disappointing to see a significant deterioration in the level of care being provided. Leaders were working on an improvement plan when we visited, but it was too early to see any proper progress.
“There was an increase of agency staff employed at the home who told us they didn’t know people’s needs well enough. One staff member hadn’t received an induction or handover and was given no training in how to support people when they were distressed or had specific care needs which placed people at risk of harm.
“Additionally, recruitment checks didn’t always follow the provider's own recruitment processes. Some references weren’t suitable, and some application forms hadn’t been fully completed, it’s important that thorough checks are carried out to keep people safe.
“It’s important in any care setting that incidents or risks to people are investigated as quickly as possible to prevent people coming to harm and to ensure lessons are learned, but this wasn’t always done at Addison Court.
“For example, falls in the home had increased significantly between June and July, but nothing had been done to check why and to put preventative measures in place to keep people safe.
“However, we did see some positive areas of care. The environment was welcoming and spacious and had been adapted for the needs of people living with dementia, such as signage to help people orientate around the home.
“The home also had two activities coordinators and we saw a birthday and wedding anniversary being celebrated during our inspection.
“We have told leaders where we expect to see improvements and will continue to monitor the home closely to keep people safe during this time. We will return to check on their progress and won’t hesitate to take further action if people aren’t receiving the care they have a right to expect.”
Inspectors found:
• The home’s incident and accident analysis failed to explore certain trends, such as unexplained bruising and minor injuries.
• Records didn’t always show that staff supported people to achieve their target fluid levels.
• Some care plans weren’t up to date or contained conflicting information.
• Duty of candour requirements weren’t always followed and there was a general lack of management oversight of the home.
• Processes to safely administer medicines weren’t always followed.
• People's lunch time experience was sometimes task orientated and disorganised, rather than person-centred.
However:
• Three staff had been nominated for an "Angel award" in recognition for their outstanding contributions to the local community.
• People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives.
• Staff followed good infection prevention and control (IPC) practices.
• The provider carried out a range of health and safety related risk assessments and checks to maintain a safe environment.