Regulator restricts admissions at Leeds care home

22 October 2012

Oakhaven care home cannot admit any more residents without  CQC prior permission.

The Care Quality Commission has told Eldercare (Halifax) Limited that it cannot admit any more residents to its Oakhaven Care Home, Leeds without the prior agreement of the Commission

The imposition of this restriction follows a series of inspections of the care home in recent months, which showed that the home continued to be non-compliant with national standards.

Inspectors found that the registered providerhad notensured that each resident was protected against the risks of receiving care or treatment that was inappropriate or unsafe.

• Inspectors observed how a lunch session was managed and found that while food was prepared and served little assistance was given or available to people to encourage and support them to eat.  Staff served the food and then had to leave to attend to other people who were having their meals in their room.  The people who remained in the dining area were left and yet many of them needed active assistance to help them eat their meal.  Despite the food being available some people were at risk of not being fed and not having their nutritional and hydration needs to met.
• During the inspection in February, the registered manager at the time told the inspectors that they had only two staff working during the evenings.  This was not sufficient to ensure that people’s needs were being met.
• Inspectors found that care plans and assessments did not always identify how people’s needs should be met, which could result in people’s needs being overlooked. 
• Inspectors found several examples of poor recording and administration of medication. In particular: administration of painkilling drugs, prescribed creams, eye drops and laxatives. Failing to keep accurate records and failing to administer medication in a manner which meets the needs of service users means that residents were not being protected against the risks associated with the unsafe use and management of medicines.

Malcolm Bower-Brown, deputy director of CQC in the North said:

"The law sets out national standards that everyone who uses services should be able to expect. Providers have a duty to ensure they meet these standards.

The repeated failure to meet these standards at Oakhaven care home is unacceptable and has resulted in us taking action to prevent Eldercare (Halifax) Limited admitting any further residents  to the home without the our prior agreement. 

We will continue to monitor this home carefully and the restriction will remain in place until we are confident that the provider is able to provide the level of service residents and their families have the right to expect.   

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

CQC has served this notice on Eldercare (Halifax) Limited under Section 28 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 –  we have imposed the following condition at Oakhaven Care Home, 213 Oakwood Lane, Oakwood, Leeds, West Yorkshire;

“The registered provider must not admit any new service users to Oakhaven Care Homewithout the prior agreement of the Commission.”