Inspectors find residents 'left in pain' at inadequate care home
A care home, where residents were left in pain after medicines failed to be administered properly, has been placed in special measures.
Inspectors were also concerned people living at Island Court care home, in Woodsetton, Dudley, were "not safeguarded from alleged abuse".
The home, in Bourne Street, was given an overall inadequate rating, by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), in its report published last week.
Its safety, effectiveness and leadership were also given the lowest rating, and its care and responsiveness was rated requires improvement.
The report stated: "Medication administration records (MARs) viewed indicated people had not received their medicines as prescribed.
"There were occasions when people had not received their medicines, received the wrong dose of medicine or received their medicines at the wrong time.
"This caused people to experience unmanaged symptoms including pain."
Inspectors claimed medication records were not clearly kept with some "illegible".
The report added: "This meant the provider could not be sure medications were being received in a safe way or as prescribed as records were not clear."
CQC officials added: "People had not been safeguarded from alleged abuse.
"Where the service had received serious allegations of abuse against people and been provided with evidence, appropriate and effective action had not been taken to protect people whilst the matter was investigated.
"Following this inspection, the improvement director reassessed the risk to people and took appropriate action to protect people from further risk of harm.
"People regularly saw staff that they did not know and who did not know their individual needs.
"One person told us, 'At the moment there are a lot of agency staff. They don't know you very well and staff don't have the time to explain to them what needs to be done'."
The home was praised by inspectors for hiring a new hairdresser – with residents talking with each other about their new haircuts and how they liked them.
A spokesman for Orchard Care Homes, which runs Island Court Care Home, said: "We are naturally very disappointed with the inspection report which does not reflect the high standards of care to which we aspire.
"We are taking the feedback very seriously and a robust action plan, which is already making a tangible difference is in place, together with senior management support. We are working with the regulator and are confident that our actions will lead to sustainable improvements.
"We would like to reassure the residents and their families that we take the situation extremely seriously and our priority is to work closely with CQC and local authorities to appropriately address all of the issues raised in the report."
