4 April 2012
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has told the owners of Thomas Knight Care Home in Blyth that they must take action to comply with the essential standards of quality and safety.
A report which is published today identifies the findings from a CQC inspection carried out in January 2012.
Inspectors found that the provider was failing to meet ten essential standards, and in nine of these areas they identified major concerns.
As a result CQC has been working closely with Northumberland County Council and the owners of the home to ensure that improvements are made and the safety and wellbeing of all residents is fully protected.
Immediately following the inspection, a co-ordinated programme of 24 hour monitoring was put in place by the local authority, and the owners of the home asked to provide a detailed recovery and improvement action plan.
Last month, CQC inspectors returned to Thomas Knight and found that significant progress is being made.
Thereport from their initial visit in January, published on the CQC website today, highlights several areas of concern, including:
Care and welfare of people who use services
Care plans were not up to date and lacked sufficient detail about the individual care needs of each resident. Records to monitor weight and food intake of people living in the home were in place, but these were not always completed consistently.
Meeting nutritional needs
Inspectors found that residents’ nutritional needs were not being adequately met and they did not receive a varied diet. People requiring a soft diet were not offered sufficient choice and inspectors were concerned that some people may not be receiving sufficient fluid.
Cleanliness and infection control
Suitable hand gels and disinfectants were not readily available for staff to use after attending to residents who required treatment or personal care. Inspectors observed that staff frequently moved around to work in different areas of the building each day and suitable measures were not in place to reduce the risk of cross infection. This was urgently addressed at the time of the inspection.
Management of medicines
Medicines that were administered to people were not always documented properly and it was not clear that residents were receiving their medication as prescribed. Administration records to advise staff on dosing instructions were not always clear and there was insufficient guidance for staff when administering medicines prescribed to be given “when required”.
Staffing
At the time of inspection many of the people living in the home were dependent on staff to provide physical help and support as well as personal care. Inspectors found that there were insufficient numbers of staff on duty to provide adequate care that fully met the needs of all residents.
Amanda Sherlock CQC Director of Operations, said:
“The standards of care we found when we visited Thomas Knight Care Home in January were worrying. The safety of people living at the home is paramount, and we have been working with the home and with Northumberland County Council to make sure this is the case.
“When our inspectors visited the home, they found that the individual needs of people living there were not always being met and residents were not receiving the safe and quality care that everyone is entitled to expect.
“It is clear that the owners of Thomas Knight Care Home have already responded to this report. On subsequent unannounced visits our inspectors have found improvements have been made.
“While we are encouraged by progress, we will continue to monitor the home very closely. If we find that they are failing to meet the essential standards of quality and safety that we demand, we will not hesitate to take further action to protect the people that live there.”
Ends
For further information please contact the CQC Regional Communications Team, David Fryer 07901 514 220 or Kirstin Hannaford 0191 233 3629.
The CQC press office can be contacted on 0207 448 9401 or out of hours on 07917 232 143.
Notes to editors
About the CQC: Snippet for press releases
About the Care Quality Commission
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and social care in England.
We make sure health and social care services provide people with safe, effective, compassionate, high-quality care and we encourage care services to improve.
We monitor, inspect and regulate services to make sure they meet fundamental standards of quality and safety and we publish what we find to help people choose care.
Read the reports
Read the reports from our checks on standards at Thomas Knight Care Home.