The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has rated Floron Residential Home for the Elderly inadequate and placed it in special measures, following an inspection in April.
The care home, which is in Forest Gate, provides care to older people, including those living with dementia.
CQC inspected the service to follow up on concerns it received about staffing levels, leadership, the safety of the premises and the quality of life people living at the service experienced.
Following the inspection, the home was rated inadequate overall. It was previously rated requires improvement.
The inspection also found the service had breached a number of regulations and the service is now in special measures, which means it will be monitored closely and re-inspected to assess whether improvements have been made.
If sufficient improvement is not made, CQC won’t hesitate to take further action - which could include placing restrictions on the service’s registration or taking steps to prevent it from providing care to people.
James Frewin, CQC head of adult social care inspection, said:
“We carried out an unannounced inspection of Floron Residential Home for the Elderly to follow-up on specific concerns we’d received about the service.
“We found a number of issues including staffing levels, a lack of person-centred care and incidents not being reported to us.
“I was particularly concerned to find that staff didn’t always seek appropriate consent from people about their care and that people’s dignity and privacy weren’t always respected.
“The service has breached a number of regulations and we’ve placed it in special measures and been clear about the improvements that need to be made. The service now has an improvement plan in place and is working with the local authority to address the issues found during our inspection.
“We will keep the care home under close review and, if significant improvements aren’t made, CQC won’t hesitate to take further action, which could include placing restrictions on the service’s registration or taking steps to prevent it from providing care to people.”
The inspection found there weren’t enough staff to safely care for people and that risk assessments weren’t complete or accurate, putting people at risk of harm.
Staff didn’t fully understand or work within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act, meaning that, when people couldn’t verbalise their needs, staff made decisions for them instead of supporting them to consent and make choices for themselves.
People couldn’t always choose whether to have a bath or shower and were often given a bed wash by staff or provided with a bowl of water to wash themselves. For one person, between January and April 2022, they were only offered a wash in their room.
Those living at the home couldn’t sit where they wanted and there was little for them to do. One person told us they had no freedom and the care home was ‘like a prison’, while a relative told us they were concerned about the lack of activities and mental stimulation being provided to people.
The dignity and privacy of people wasn’t always respected. Inspectors observed staff applying creams to people in the lounge, in front of others living at the service, and people often shared a bedroom, with only a screen for privacy. The screens didn’t extend across the whole room, meaning that people could see and hear others receiving personal care.
The premises weren’t well maintained, and décor and furniture was old and in need of replacing. There was a strong malodour throughout the communal area, effecting people’s enjoyment of their surroundings, and the clinical waste bin was overflowing, increasing the risk of infection.
There was a lack of management and oversight at the service and, at the time of the inspection, the service hadn’t had a registered manager in post for nine months.
However, the service responded immediately to the inspection findings and employed an experienced consultant to assist them in improving the service.
Relatives of people living at the service told us they felt it was safe and the inspection found people could access healthcare services, including a weekly video call from the local GP, as part of a regular health check for those living at the home.