A Renfrewshire care home has been issued with an improvement notice after receiving four out of five “unsatisfactory” ratings in a recent inspection.
Elderslie Care Home received an unannounced visit from the Care Inspectorate on February 19, which raised “significant concerns” in relation to “infection prevention and control.”
During the inspection, two residents even told inspectors they had not been offered a shower or bath for a “number of weeks.”
And in the latest report, the watchdog stated they were “not confident” that the people who use the service were “consistently receiving acceptable standards of care and support.”
As a result, a serious concern letter was issued on February 21, to Advinia Care Homes Ltd – who run the Fulbar Road facility.
The inspectors returned to the care home on February 24, and found that improvements had been made to “satisfy the letter of serious concern.”
The remainder of the inspection was completed between February 27 and March 3.
An Improvement Notice was issued was then issued due to “significant concerns” in relation to the “provision of safe and effective care, leadership and management of the service and staff knowledge and skills in key areas including adult support and protection”.
Publishing their findings, the watchdog rated the care home – which costs over £1000 per week – “unsatisfactory” in four out of five areas with the other rating for setting being scored as “adequate.”
The key messages from the inspection were that cleaning arrangements “must be improved”, and environmental improvements achieved, to ensure people benefit from a safe, clean and comfortable living environment.
It was noted by inspectors that leadership and management within the home “needed to improve” as did communication and consultation with the people who use the service and their family. Staff training and development processes also “must be improved.”
The Care Inspectorate also published in their findings that quality audits were “not used to good effect” and therefore “did not inform improvement” and that staff “were not consistently” working in line with professionals standards, policies and procedures and legislation.
Regarding the home’s ability to support wellbeing, the watchdog’s report stated “we evaluated the service as delivering an unsatisfactory level of care as we found significant weaknesses which compromised people’s health, welfare and safety.”
The service which is subject to the Scottish Covid-19 Inquiry as a result of 27 residents dying during the first three months of the coronavirus pandemic, was slammed by the Care Inspectorate as there were “high volumes of soiled laundry, including bedding, being sent to the laundry each day” and there was evidence of “significant contamination” on resident’s own and shared furniture.
Staff inspectors spoke to “did not have knowledge” of the current National Infection Prevention and Control Manual. The report stated there was “some confusion” in relation to the storage of personal protective equipment which led to items “being stored in areas that it would become contaminated.”
Rating setting as “adequate” inspectors published that there are areas of the home that were “well presented, nicely decorated with attractive furniture and accessories.”
They also noted resident rooms were found to be personalised with their own furniture and items important to
them.
An Advinia spokesperson said: “The safety and wellbeing of our residents is our highest priority, and we fully acknowledge the findings of the Care Inspectorate in their latest report.
“Following this inspection, we immediately put in place a robust action plan to address the issues identified and significant improvements have already been made.
“Meanwhile, we have appointed a new management team at Elderslie to implement and oversee these changes, which includes a comprehensive training review to ensure our dedicated colleagues can enhance their knowledge and skills.”
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