Eccleston Court care home found to 'require improvement'

Eccleston Court Care Home, on Holme Road, was subject to an unannounced visit by the care Quality Commission (CQC).

Inspection visits took place on April 27, April 2 and May 9 this year and there were 23 people using the service at the time of the inspection.

It was also the first inspection at the home since being registered under current provider Park Homes in October 2021.

The home was rated as ‘requires improvement’ overall, the same grading a sits previous inspection in November 2020.

The home was given the rating for four out of five categories; whether the service was safe, effective, responsive and well-led.

Meanwhile, it was rated as ‘Good’ for whether it was caring.

Inspectors noted: “People's medicines were not always managed safely” and “unlabelled prescribed drinks for people were left in the communal dining areas”.

It was said “a number of medicine errors had recently been reported”, meaning staff “had developed guidance for the safe administration of medicines and were working to an action plan produced by the local authority medicines optimisation team”.

It was noted that “effective safeguarding procedures were in place”.

In terms of effectiveness, inspectors said: “Decisions in people's best interests had not always been formally recorded. For example, for the use of bespoke seating”.

It was noted “the majority of staff had completed identified training but “not all staff had access to electronic training and policies and procedures needed for their role”.

On responsiveness, it was said: “People did not always have access to information that met their needs. For example, menus were in small print, which some people were unable to read and make choices from”.

Also, “records relating to the personal care that had been delivered were not always completed”.

In terms of whether the service was well-led inspectors noted: “The transfer from the previous provider had not been well planned, including the integration of new systems and procedures”.

It was said there were “challenges in relation to the way the registered provider operated the service, including staff not being able to access all electronic records and systems”

There was also “a lack of auditing, oversight and support by the provider”.

In terms of whether the service was caring, it was said: “People told us that staff always asked and explained what they are doing prior to delivering care and support”.

It was added “people were supported by staff who were respectful and promoted privacy and dignity”.

It was said “people and their family members told us they felt safe living at Eccleston Court Care Home”. Also, “people were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests”.

A spokesman for Park Homes said: “We have received the recent report from the Care Quality Commission for Eccleston Court, we are pleased that the caring nature of the home has been acknowledged and highlighted within the report and fully accept and apologise to the people we support and our families that there are areas where it was clear that we need to make improvements.

“Since the inspection, we have already made significant improvements and are taking all the necessary steps to ensure that these improvements are embedded and sustained, we have allocated additional management resources to support with this and ensure that our usually high standards are met again at the home.”