Hygiene standards criticised

Abbey Hey Care Home. Inadequate rating in latest Care Quality Commission report.

"POOR standards of hygiene" were uncovered at a care home rated 'inadequate' after an inspection.

"Mal-odours", "stained carpets" and "walls with dried faeces on" were discovered by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) during an unannounced inspection.

Safety and leadership at Abbey Hey Care Home, in Delamere Street, Oldham, were found to be inadequate by the government health watchdog which placed the home in special measures.

Effectiveness, care and responsiveness were found to "require improvement" at the home which caters for up to 39 older residents, some of whom may be living with dementia.

Bondcare, which operates the home, said it would address the issues raised "as a matter of urgency" but was "disappointed" with the report.

Poor

It cited an "excellent" rating from Oldham Social Services three weeks before the CQC inspection and said inspectors visited before cleaners had undertaken their duties.

The CQC report published in December said: "We found poor standards of hygiene throughout the home.

"We found communal areas, people's bedrooms, bathrooms, equipment and furniture had not been thoroughly cleaned and some beds were made with stained and dirty bedding.

"There were mal-odours in three people's rooms and carpets were stained and dirty. We found commodes, sensor mats, toilet seats, wheelchairs, chairs and tables which hadn't been cleaned adequately and beds with stained and soiled bedding.

"In people's rooms and in toilet areas, we found flooring, walls and equipment with dried faeces on. In one en-suite bathroom a soiled continence pad had been left on the floor.

"People were not living in a clean and hygienic environment and systems to support effective infection prevention and control were not safe.

"Services in special measures will be kept under review and if we have not taken immediate action to propose to cancel the provider's registration of the service, will be inspected again within six months."

Inspectors, who visited the site in October, also found breaches in infection prevention, staffing, training and medicine regulations.

They highlighted "insufficient staff" to meet people's needs, residents sitting around for long periods "with little interaction from staff" and errors caused by "shortfalls" in the administration of medicines.

However, they shared that staff were kind and caring, and a system was in place for residents and their relatives to raise concerns.

Inspectors will keep Abbey Hey under review and said they expect to see "significant improvements" by the time of their next inspection.

Bondcare business development manager Jules Gregory said: "We were extremely disappointed to receive such a negative report from the CQC and particularly so as Abbey Hey received an excellent rating from Oldham Social Services three weeks before the CQC visited the care home.

"In addition, Abbey Hey retained its five-star rating from Environmental Health and Oldham's Infection Control Team had no concerns.

"As a responsible care provider we have formulated an action plan to rectify the real issues raised to ensure that we continually improve on the quality of care that we deliver.

"The CQC inspector chose to undertake this review first thing in the morning when our residents were in the process of getting up out of bed.

"Cleaners, to maintain the dignity of the residents, have to wait for the residents to leave their rooms before they undertake their cleaning duties.

"There are always enough staff on duty within the care home and issues around staffing have never been an issue to anyone before.

"We tried to challenge the accuracy of the CQC report as we feel its content was harsh and unfair."