CQC criticises specialist dementia care home

A SPECIALIST dementia care home failed to train its staff on how to deal with the illness, an independent health watchdog has revealed.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has found employees at Annabel Court in St Georges had been given core skills training but did not have any specialist knowledge of dementia or how to look after sufferers.

The home was ordered to make improvement in three areas, as inspectors were told by staff that there were too few of them working at some points. Residents and relatives however praised the employees who did work there.

Insufficient audit procedures also ‘could lead to people receiving unsafe or inappropriate care’, according to the CQC’s report.

Annabel Court was also ordered to improve following a safeguarding review run by North Somerset Council in January, shortly after the death of 92-year-old resident Harold Seacole, who moved into the home after it opened last summer.

His daughter, Sally Holmes, told the Mercury that she was angry that six months on, basic problems were still evident at Annabel Court.

Mr Seacole lived with Mrs Holmes at her home in Baytree Road, but having needed ‘brilliant’ care by Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health NHS Trust, doctors told her that her father needed to stay at a specialist dementia home.

However the safeguarding review was brought about following complaints over problems Mr Seacole suffered at the home including falls, dehydration and chest infections.

When Mr Seacole suffered a chest infection in October, an ambulance was called but although his condition worsened, staff refused to upgrade the importance of the emergency call – despite phone calls and emails from Mrs Holmes who was on holiday in Florida.

The 92-year-old was eventually transferred to Weston General Hospital where he died 10 days later of community-acquired pneumonia.

She said: “It makes me feel terrible. You can imagine how gruelling those (safeguard) meetings were.

“I went through them so other residents were helped.

“So it makes me pig sick to see it has a less than glowing report. It makes me feel quite angry.”

She also believes a lack of specialist dementia training contributed to poor care while her father was at Annabel Court.

On one occasion when she visited, she said his room was freezing cold because the heating was broken, but staff said her father had refused to move to a warmer room.

Mrs Holmes said: “If you were trained in dementia you would be able to explain to him why he needs to move.”

Weston’s Annabel House Care Centre, a sister home to Annabel Court, has also been ordered to make improvements by the CQC, despite a largely-positive report.

The quality of staff was praised by residents at the Lower Bristol Road home but small concerns over auditing and rarely-used lifting techniques were raised.

In response to the report, manager Susan Flowers said: “Since the CQC inspection took place, Annabel Court has appointed a new manager. Her focus is to provide strong leadership and direction, in order to achieve positive outcomes for residents.

“A review of skill mix has led to the appointment of key new members of staff. A programme of appraisal and supervision has commenced in order to identify personal learning needs.

“An experienced professional is assisting the manager with a programme of auditing, to ensure that we deliver a high standard of service.

“There has been a review of the care environment, with greater use of outdoor spaces to enhance residents’ lives. Mealtimes are being modified so that residents enjoy enhanced dining experience every day.

“All the staff at Annabel Court are committed to ensuring a positive experience for all our residents.”