Watchdog slates Filey nursing home

Ackworth House Nursing Home in Filey, which can provide nursing for up to 43 older people with a physical or sensory impairment, has been told by The Care Quality Commission (CQC) that it must make improvements or face enforcement action.

Inspectors found that the beach-front home was failing to provide care which was safe, effective, caring, responsive or well-led during an unannounced inspection in August.

Their report revealed people were not protected from the risk of infection because they were not cared for in a clean, hygienic environment.

Inspectors found “areas within the service which were odorous and dirty,” medicines in use that were out of date and not always stored safely and they “heard a call bell ringing for 15 minutes before staff went to answer it” which they said staff ignored despite being only yards away from the person’s bedroom.

“The arrangements for staffing did not safeguard people,” according to the report and inspectors were so concerned about one resident that they made a safeguarding alert to the local authority. The report said: “Although people told us they felt safe we found that this service was not providing consistently safe care.”

Seven residents were living with dementia and their specific needs around eating and drinking had not been considered and staff were not clear about what to do in the event of a fire.

The administration of medicines was found to be poorly managed and there had been five medication errors at the service in the 12 months before the inspection, according to the report.

Debbie Westhead, deputy chief inspector of adult social care in the north, said: “We have told Ackworth House Limited that they must take swift action to protect the health, safety and welfare of the people living at the home. The provider is failing to meet the basic needs and individual choices of the people living at the home and it is unacceptable that the service has failed to make progress since our previous visit in January 2014.

“The people for whom they are providing a service are entitled to services which are safe, effective, caring, well led and responsive to their needs. We will continue to monitor the home’s progress to see if improvements are being made and we will return to check that the provider has made all the changes required to ensure people are safe and well cared for. If we find that this is not the case we will consider using our legal powers further to protect the people who live here.”

The home is taking legal advice over some areas of the report which it disputes.

Susan Bradney, director of Ackworth House Nursing Home said: “We are committed to providing a service that prioritises the health, safety and welfare of the people who live at our home.

“We acknowledge some of the CQC’s findings and we are working hard to make improvements. However there are some areas of the report which we dispute and we’re currently taking legal advice.”

Staff rotas revealed occasions when staff numbers had been below that stated as required by the provider.

Inspectors found the premises had not been suitably adapted to assist people living with dementia to get around the home. Some residents had not been consulted or assessed as to whether they had the mental capacity to make decisions regarding their care.