A ‘MALODOROUS’ Hyde care home has been ordered to improve after inspectors discovered several flaws.
The Care Quality Commission found concerns over people using Charnley House, the state of the facility and even saw ‘verbal altercations.’
Now the Albert Road facility has been told it must get better after being placed in the ‘requires improvement’ banding.
A report into Charnley House states: “We found several people had bruises and marks on their skin.
“Body Maps should be used to document and illustrate visible signs of harm and physical injuries. However, body maps were not always being completed to reflect these.
“We observed one person had black bruising and a skin tear to their hand and finger and there was no incident form or body map completed.
“We observed another person had significant bruising to their head and face and there was no completed body map.”
The condition of the home, which can accommodate up to 40 people, was also noted, along with how a lack of staff could also present hazards.
The report adds: “The home was not always clean and was malodorous in communal areas and some people’s bedrooms.
“This malodour was present when we checked at different times of the day over our 3 days of visits. Some people’s bedrooms and bedding were unclean. Flooring was unclean in some areas of the home and required replacement.
“Safety checks and home walkarounds had been carried out and there was a home maintenance action plan was in place.
“However, some actions had not been completed for several months and we identified areas in the environment that required repair and renovation to ensure people were safe.
“We found concerns regarding the accessibility of people to an unsafe area, wardrobes were not always secured to walls and several radiators were not covered to prevent risk of injury.
“We observed verbal altercations between people in communal areas where no staff were present.
“We found there were a high number of falls at the home at night and there are only three care staff on each night shift to care for up to 40 people over three floors.”
Despite people telling inspectors they felt safe and staff were supportive of them, as well as the best efforts of an activities co-ordinator, concerns were also detailed over furnishings.
Inspectors noted from their August visit: “The provider had removed all soft furnishings and therefore, people did not have cushions on chairs.
“Despite many people spending a large part of their day in the main lounge, the only stimulation was a television in one corner – there were no magazines, books or dementia specific items, such as fiddle blankets.
“We raised concerns with the registered manager about the lack of cushions on chairs in the large communal lounge. On the second day of inspection, we found four cushions had been placed in the lounge.
“We checked people’s bedrooms throughout the inspection and found bedrooms were not always clean.
We found everyone, with the exception of two people, had been provided with thin, noisy waterproof pillows and duvets and these were covered in bedding that was in poor condition – discoloured and some covers were ripped and unclean.”
Other concerns about Charnley House included staff not always accurately recording when thickener powder was added to drinks for people at risk of choking and aspiration.
Records were not always kept for when time specific medicines had been administered and no provision for administering medicines during the night shift as staff were not trained.
Inspectors did say management were putting systems in place to tackle many of the issues they found.
But they have been ordered to take action on two breaches of regulation, namely failing to ensure the premises and equipment were clean and safe and not ensuring there was enough staff and not all staff had received training and supervision to safely meet the needs of people using the service at all times.
Peter Hill, managing director of Charnley House Ltd, said it is ‘a prudent and reflective provider of care’, which always takes seriously ‘any concern raised about our service.’