Lack of staff highlighted as Brownhills Nursing Home told to improve

Care Quality Commission inspectors have rated Brownhills Nursing Home, on Hednesford Road, as 'requires improvement'.

It is the second time in as many years the home has been warned by the CQC. In 2015 it was told to switch off its security cameras after not receiving full consent from residents.

The report into the home, which cares up to 50 older people including those with dementia and physical disabilities, was released last week.

• Click here to read the full CQC report

It found that the home's safety, responsiveness, effectiveness, leadership and level of caring all 'required improvement'.

A report prepared after the inspection in July read: "We found people living at the home were not always supported by sufficient numbers of staff and improvements were required.

"At this inspection we found that in terms of staffing levels, improvements had not been made.

"We observed the levels of staffing on each of the two floors of the home and found there were not enough staff to respond to people's needs in a timely way.

"On the first floor we saw that people who required support to mobilise were not able to do so, as staff were not available to assist them.

"One person who required pain relieving medicines had to wait for 20 minutes before receiving them.

"It was clear throughout the inspection that although staff were very busy, they were finding it difficult to provide the level of support people required."

After speaking to nine people who lived at the home, six relatives, seven staff, the manager and a visiting healthcare professional, inspectors also raised concerns over the level of engagement between staff and patients.

They observed during an activity that people were sitting at tables in the communal areas with paper and pens, but no-one was engaged in the activity, instead people sat with their head on the table, or had fallen asleep.

Concerns were also raised over meal times where patients were offered no choice and those who needed help eating would sometimes have to wait up to 15 minutes to be seen.

However staff at the home were praised by inspectors as they 'knew how to recognise possible signs of abuse'.

The report added that the provider used risk assessments which helped to ensure people's care and support was delivered in a way that kept them safe from harm.

Staff had spotted the risks to one person who was in danger of an infection and they were also following guidance recorded in people's care records.

Sat Pawar, a director at Kidderminster Care who run Brownhills Nursing Home, said: "We note the CQC's concerns and although we do not agree with all of them we are working with them and others to make the necessary improvements."