CQC takes action to protect people at Coventry care home

Published: 19 January 2024 Page last updated: 19 January 2024
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The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has rated Cordelia Court care home in Coventry, inadequate and placed it into special measures to protect people, following an inspection in October.

Cordelia Court, run by Corvan Limited, is a residential care home providing accommodation and personal care to adults who may live with dementia or a sensory impairment. The service provides support for up to 34 people. At the time of this inspection, 30 people were living at the home.

This inspection was carried out to follow up on action CQC told the provider to take after the last inspection in February. Also, to check they had followed their action plan and meet legal requirements to keep people safe.

Following this inspection, the service’s overall rating has dropped from requires improvement to inadequate, as have the ratings for being safe and well-led. It has again been rated requires improvement for being caring. As this was a focused inspection, effective and responsive were not included in this inspection and remain rated requires improvement.

The service is now in special measures, which means it will be kept under close review by CQC to keep people safe and it will be monitored to check sufficient improvements have been made.

Amanda Lyndon, CQC deputy director of operations in the midlands, said:

“When we visited Cordelia Court care home, it was disappointing to find the provider hadn’t taken sufficient action to address the issues we identified at our previous inspection in February.

“We found risks associated with people's care which weren’t effectively managed, and records weren’t always clear. For example, someone who was at risk of falls needed a sensor mat on the floor to alert staff if they stood on it, so staff could support them. However, there wasn’t a mat in place which could put them at risk of falling and coming to harm.

“We also found safety concerns at the home. There were fire doors which couldn’t close and cracked windows, one with missing glass. We saw areas of the home that were unclean, including debris behind one person’s bed and equipment and furniture in use that was either dirty, or damaged. Most significantly, we found people were sharing unlabelled incontinence underwear which was unhygienic and could put people at risk of infection. This must be addressed as a priority.

“Additionally, we saw people weren’t always safeguarded from the risk of abuse as systems and processes weren’t managed effectively. When someone had sustained an injury and required hospital treatment, leaders hadn’t investigated how it happened and how they could protect the person from any future incidents.

“This level of care is unacceptable. We have told Cordelia Court where we expect to see improvements and will continue to monitor them closely to keep people safe during this time.  We will return to check on their progress and won’t hesitate to take further action if people are not receiving the care they have a right to expect.”

Inspectors found:

  • There were some medicine discrepancies that had not been identified and acted upon to show medicines were always managed safely
  • Staffing arrangements were not always effectively managed to ensure people experienced person centred care
  • Records relating to incidents and accidents were not always effectively maintained to help identify and act on risks
  • People were not always supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives
  • Systems and processes to monitor the quality and safety of the service were ineffective
  • Areas needing improvement were not always identified and acted upon in a timely way
  • Records were either not consistently maintained or were not in sufficient detail to show care and incidents had been safely and effectively managed.

However:

  • Inspectors saw staff supported people in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice
  • There were caring interactions between staff and people using the service and staff were observed to have a caring approach when supporting people.

The report will be published on CQC’s website in the next few days.

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.