Peterborough care provider placed in special measures by CQC as safety concerns raised

A Peterborough care provider has been placed into special measures after a scathing report from the CQC was published.

The CQC inspected Regional Care Peterborough – based in Orton – due to concerns about missed care calls.

It found the service, which cared for 80 people in their own homes, was not providing standards of care people have a right to expect.

Concerns were raised about safety surrounding COVID – with staff not using lateral flow tests as directed by the government to protect people from the illness.

In the section of the report about safety, inspectors said ‘people were not safe and were at risk of avoidable harm.’

Along with the COVID issues, the report said: “We could not be confident medicines were administered as prescribed. Medication audits had not identified all of the issues with the medicines administration records that we found during the inspection.”

The report added; “The provider was not following safe recruitment procedures. This put people at risk of receiving care from staff who were not suitable to work with vulnerable people.”

Management was also criticised, with the report saying: “There had been a significant lack of effective management over a considerable period of time. This had adversely impacted on the care people received, their safety and the safety of staff. The governance system

that was used to monitor the quality of the care and support being given was not robust enough.”

Care plans were also criticised. the report said; “Daily notes for one person stated that they had been assisted with a bath, but their care plan stated they always had a shower. The care plan for the same person detailed that staff should apply creams. However, it did not state what creams or where to be applied. The registered manager told us that the person did not have creams applied. Their daily notes recorded that staff had applied cream.”

Louise Broddle, CQC head of inspection for adult social care, said: “People using Regional Care Peterborough were not receiving a consistently good service and risks to their health and wellbeing were not always well managed.

“This included a failure to ensure home visits took place at planned times, meaning people expecting personal care – such as help with eating, personal hygiene and medication – did not always receive care when they expected.

“We were also not confident peoples’ medicines were managed as prescribed.

“We also found staff were not using lateral flow tests as directed by the government to protect people from COVID-19, however leaders took immediate action after we raised this issue.

“Behind these issues was a lack of good management from the service’s leaders through quality assurance monitoring and recruitment checks for new staff.

“As we have placed this service in special measures, it will be kept under close review and re-inspected in the coming months.

“If we are not satisfied people are receiving the safe and effective care that they have a right to expect, we will take further action against the provider of the service to ensure people’s safety.”

Councillor John Howard, Peterborough City Council Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, Health & Public Health said: “Our foremost concern is always to make sure that our residents are supported and cared for in the right way by the providers we commission.

"We alerted the CQC of our concerns and we are working closely with Regional Care to ensure residents are receiving safe care.

" This kind of care is critical to helping keep people independent in their own homes for as long as possible.

"The provider has accepted that changes need to be made and we have put in place an action plan that will be closely monitored to ensure that they continue to make the necessary improvements.”

The Peterborough Telegraph has contacted Regional Care Peterborough for comment about the report.