A CARE home has been placed in special measures after a surprise inspection found residents were being put at risk of harm.

Health watchdog the Care Quality Commission has threatened to shut down Laverstock Care Centre if it fails to make "significant improvements" within six months.

A report published this week branded the home inadequate and listed numerous concerns including staff shortages, unsafe handling of medicines and people not being given enough to drink in hot weather.

Concerns included:

  • Safety risks not properly identified or addressed
  • Not enough staff to meet people's needs
  • People not properly supervised
  • Medicines not safely managed
  • Staff lack understanding of mental health rules
  • Pain not managed sufficiently
  • People's wishes for end-of-life care not recorded
  • Care plans not followed
  • Staff not trained to handle challenging behaviour
  • People not treated with dignity and respect
  • Staff not doing enough to stop accidents happening again

A team of experts visited the home in London Road on June 8 and spoke to three managers, 24 residents, four relatives and 15 members of staff.

They found a number of failings identified at a previous inspection had not been addressed, including repeated breaches of the Health and Social Care Act.

The report also said allegations of "institutional abuse" were being investigated.

People told inspectors they felt safe and there were "complimentary comments" about the staff.

But five members of staff raised concerns about their colleagues shouting at people and showing a lack of care.

The 13,000-word report described a resident entering another person's room and assaulting them, staff spoon-feeding a sleeping person, and others playing on their mobile phones rather than looking after the people in their care.

When one person was upset about their deteriorating health and said they wanted to die, the member of staff helping them was called away to answer another bell.

She told inspectors: "I hate leaving her as I know she's upset but what can I do? It's like this all the time. We just can't give

people proper time".

Some residents said staff responded quickly to call bells, but one said "staffing is a real problem. There's just not enough of them. They're never around."

The report also described residents being left unsupervised in the lounge, spilling food and drinks, and said some staff did not wash their hands before serving meals.

A spokesman for Caring Homes, which runs the centre, said: “We take feedback from the CQC very seriously. This report relates to an inspection that was carried out in June and we sincerely believe it does not provide a fair reflection of the quality of care at the home.

"The CQC, in agreement with Laverstock, re-inspected the home last week and their feedback was very positive.

"We are expecting the new report to be published very soon.

“The health and wellbeing of residents is always our number one priority and we are continuously working to develop and improve upon the quality of care we provide.

"Our dedicated staff team has put in place a comprehensive action plan to make those improvements, and to keep residents and relatives updated on progress every step of the way.

"We’re confident this commitment to high quality care will be reflected in the new report.”