Halesowen care home which failed in Covid safety is closed down
A Halesowen care home which failed to protect residents from Covid-19 has closed after health inspectors slammed its safety twice in three months.
The owners of Everley Residential Home, in Lyde Green, confirmed they are no longer trading, after the Care Quality Commission’s (CQC) conducted a follow-up inspection in August.
In a report published in October, inspectors said the 16-bed unit for elderly people with dementia and physical disabilities was not providing services in a safe way.
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Summarising the findings, they said: “An infection prevention control audit was carried out by CQC during the inspection. It was found the provider was not meeting government guidelines in regard to Covid-19.
“People had not been isolated in the home on return from hospital increasing the risks of potential Covid-19 spread. Staff and people had not received regular Covid-19 tests”
The CQC also found residents were at risk of dehydration, had lost weight and had suffered mistreatment, adding: “People had been subject to abuse and this had not been escalated and investigated to prevent further occurrences.
“Abuse or improper treatment was not always reported, investigated or acted on.”
The latest damning report comes after an earlier inspection in June found a series of failings.
During that visit the CQC discovered staff were repeatedly verbally threatened and abused by a resident, adding: “Care plans and risk assessments in place were inadequate and did not support staff to safely manage the person’s behaviour.”
It also said people’s human rights hadn’t been protected when the home signed ‘Do not resuscitate forms’ for residents who became infected by Covid-19.
In response to the CQC findings Dudley Council said it had now moved people to new accommodation.
Councillor Nicolas Barlow, cabinet member for health and adult social care, said: “The council has worked closely with CQC and Everley Residential Home to enable a safe transfer of all residents to alternative care and support. We understand the home is now closed.”
A spokesman for the home’s owners, Thames Williams Care, said the company was no longer trading but refused to comment further.
