Closing Whittlesey care home placed in special measures after 'unacceptable' levels of care given

A damning Care Quality Commission report has criticised The Elms Care Home in Whittlesey for failings and providing an “unacceptable” level of care.

The home has been placed into special measures and the report is believed to be a major reason why provider HC-One apologised and took the decision to close the home last week. The home, which caters for up to 37 people, will close on October 23.

Amongst the failings, the report found that:

• The service was not well-led.
• The registered manager and provider of the service, HC-One, failed to carry out their regulatory responsibilities.
• Quality assurance processes were ineffective, meaning people were exposed to unnecessary risk of harm, and leaders had not always acted as they said they would to improve people’s care.
• People did not always receive their medicines as prescribed. Staff did not always seek prompt medical advice after medicines errors occurred.
• People's needs were not effectively assessed or reviewed, and their care was not always planned in line with best-practice guidance.
• People's health conditions were not monitored in line with guidance, and necessary referrals were not always made to external healthcare professionals.
• Policies and systems did not support people to have maximum choice and control of their lives, including for decisions about their end-of-life care. They also were not always treated with dignity and respect.
• The service was highly reliant on agency workers, resulting in people not receiving timely or consistent care.
• Staff reported feeling rushed and there was no reliable record of who worked at the home.
• People's fluid and food intake was inconsistently managed. Records for this were not satisfactorily completed, meaning inspectors could not be confident people had enough to drink. Staff received an induction when they were first employed at the service. However, they did not always receive an induction when they were promoted.
• This meant staff did not always know and understand HC-One’s systems or their responsibilities.
• Not all staff had completed relevant training within expected timeframes. However, the registered manager was addressing this.
• Staff did not feel well supported by management.

‘Unacceptable’ care

Louise Broddle, CQC head of inspection for adult social care, said: “Standards of care at the Elms were unacceptable. People’s needs and preferences weren’t being met, including during end-of-life care, and they weren’t being treated with dignity or respect.

"Responsibility for the failings at the Elm’s lies with HC-One as provider of the service. HC-One should have taken all reasonable steps to ensure it could meet people’s needs and ensure their safety. It hadn’t met its responsibilities and consequently subjected its residents to unacceptable standards of care.

"We are keeping the Elms under close review and we will not hesitate to take further action if we are not assured it has made significant improvement. This could include requiring the home’s closure.”