Bosses at a care home in Glenrothes have been told residents’ safety may be compromised if improvements are not made.
Glamis House, part of Glenrothes House, received a ‘weak’ rating following a visit by the Care Inspectorate.
The facility is a home for six adults with physical and sensory disabilities.
A report published after the visit mentioned staff shortages and a “lack of trust and respect” between staff and managers. It described the leadership at the facility, run by Leonard Cheshire Services, as “weak” .
It also said people were not weighed regularly and food and fluid intake was not monitored.
Residents’ choices were restricted, calls for help went unanswered and some Covid-19 guidelines were not properly followed, according to inspectors.
During the visit one person said their “dignity was compromised” when their request to use the toilet was not responded to in time.
Calls for help unanswered
The report details several concerns, including:
- Residents not being weighed regularly, sometimes for several months. Those found to have lost significant amounts of weight were not referred to a health professional.
- Food and fluid intake were not monitored; charts were either incomplete, not evaluated or not in place.
- People could press buzzers for help but these went unanswered for long periods and pagers alerting staff were left unattended
- Residents’ rights were not supported and their choices, including how they spent money, where they went and who they spent time with, restricted.
- People could not choose those who cared for them and had no control over their service.
- Care plans and staff discussions used “negative and outdated language”.
- Relatives felt they were not always listened to, others felt they were not involved in developing plans and were not always kept informed.
Covid-19 pandemic
Concerns relating to coronavirus were also raised as PPE was spotted thrown away in uncovered office bins, not stored correctly and unavailable when needed.
Touch points like door handles and key safes were cleaned once per day while shared equipment was visibly dirty and bins uncovered. Staff were also found to not always be observing social distancing.
A contingency plan should there be an outbreak was not in place.
Staff
The report said: “The lack of organisation and leadership led to a culture where staff did not recognise or accept responsibility or accountability for their professional practice or registration.
“Managers lacked the ability and confidence to address poor practice and decisions and this meant staff’s needs were often prioritised over those of the people using the service.”
The Care Inspectorate said improvements must be made by April 29 but were “unlikely to take place without appropriate, external support”.
Without improvement as a matter of priority, the welfare or safety of people may be compromised.”
The Care Inspectorate
The report added: “We concluded that the service did not identify or respond appropriately to risks to people’s health, safety and wellbeing. Subsequently, people were at risk of harm.
“Furthermore, the service was poorly organised and managed.
“In summary, we found people’s care and support needs were poorly planned, monitored and met.
“Without improvement as a matter of priority, the welfare or safety of people may be compromised.”
‘Unprecedented and challenging circumstances’
A spokesperson from Leonard Cheshire in Scotland said: “The recent Care Inspectorate grades at our Glamis supported living service do not reflect the high quality standards expected by Leonard Cheshire.
“Our staff have had to work under unprecedented and challenging circumstances during the Covid pandemic. This has been compounded by the ongoing recruitment challenges facing the social care sector across Scotland.
“We are working with the Care Inspectorate to action improvements that will meet the requirements made in their report. Additional resources are in place to support the staff and service users during this period of improvement.”
