A care home has been ordered to improve for the fourth time after a watchdog found residents were ‘still at risk of not receiving their medicines safely’. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) visited Hillbrook Grange, in Bramhall, Stockport to check it had followed its action plan, after a previous inspection found ‘shortfalls in the safe management of medicines’.
But while officials said the home had made progress in this respect, they also noted ‘continued concerns’, adding that ‘further improvement’ was required. The Ack Lane East home says all the concerns were ‘isolated and minor’ and addressed before inspectors left the premises.
A newly published CQC report - based on the January inspection - reads: “Not enough improvement had been made at this inspection and the provider was still in breach of regulation.” It continues: "Since our last visit improvements were identified and systems had been put in place to manage medicines in a safer manner.
READ MORE: Care home residents made to get up at 4.30am so over-stretched staff could get them ready for the day
“However, these systems were not always followed by staff and they were not closely monitored and audited. There were still areas of poor medicines handling which need further improvement to ensure people were not put at risk of harm.”
The report adds that medicines were not always given at the correct times, meaning they may not be effective - placing 'people at at risk of experiencing the symptoms the medicines were prescribed to treat’.
Inspectors also noted that written guidance was not always in place for staff when medicines were to be given ‘when required’ or with a choice of dose.
The report states: “This meant staff did not have the information to tell them when someone may need the medicine or how much to give. When guidance was in place it was not always personalised, or it was not followed properly which meant people were not given medicines including laxatives appropriately.”
And while a system was in place to record the application of creams, officials say this had not always been followed.
“It was not possible to tell from the records if people had had the correct creams applied at the times they were needed,” the report adds. "Medicated patches were not rotated in accordance with the manufacturers' directions. This put people at risk of developing skin irritation.
“Whilst good improvements had been made to the safe management of medicines since the last inspection, we found continued concerns and further improvement was required.”
This meant the home - which has now been rated as ‘requires improvement’ or ‘inadequate for four consecutive inspections - remained in breach of care regulations.
On a more positive note, inspectors noted ‘kind and caring interactions’ between staff and people living at the home.
“People were cared for by staff who understood how to safeguard people and how to report any concerns,” the report adds. “The home was clean and tidy, and people were supported to receive visits from family and friends.”
Residents were also given ‘maximum choice and control of their lives’, while ‘staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests’.
Rosaleen Charles, registered manager at Hillbrook Grange, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service, that care home staff were providing 'excellent work and commitment’ at a difficult time.
She added: “Any concerns CQC found on the day of the inspection were isolated and minor and were actioned before the inspectors left the care home. We are all working in difficult circumstances particularly with the countrywide recruitment and social care crisis.”
Read more of today's top stories here
READ NEXT:
- Martial arts instructor attacked police officers as they tried to arrest him for breaking Covid lockdown
- Boy found hiding huge knife in his waistband at Victoria station
- The wrecked caravan beneath a human waste pipe where a £20-a-day counterfeit street spotter may have lived
- Mum's anger after housing association carry out two weeks of works on her home
- 'I want to cry - it is a mountain': Teachers speak out after thousands march through Manchester
