An award-winning Stonehaven care home branded “weak” by a watchdog has already made the changes ordered by inspectors.
Mowat Court, which has space for up to 44 older people, was visited by the Care Inspectorate at the end of January.
But representatives found the standards of its communal areas, bedrooms and bathrooms “fell below” what is expected of such a facility.
Inspectors said “most” of the bedrooms required refurbishing and redecorating, and that all of the mattresses they looked at were either stained or damaged.
Additionally, pillows were visibly dirty and bedframes were dusty.
The Care Inspectorate rated it “weak” – two marks out of six – for its level of care and support during the pandemic.
After the visit, Mowat Court operator Care UK said it had taken “swift” action to address the issues with cleanliness.
And during a follow-up inspection on February 12, the Care Inspectorate said a “more efficient and safer way of working” had been implemented.
Its report said: “A deep clean of people’s bedrooms, furniture and care equipment had taken place.
“All furniture, beds and mattresses were checked and replaced as necessary.
“Additional decluttering of communal areas had taken place, further reducing the risk of cross contamination of infection to people living and working in the service.”
The initial inspection found a vacant bedroom still contained a former resident’s belongings and “significant” level of debris.
An overflowing PPE waste bin was also being stored there, which inspectors said raised the risk of potential cross-contamination.
Staff have since been given advice on the topic, and were able to demonstrate “effective infection prevention and control practices” for inspectors.
The Care Inspectorate has now raised the facility’s grade to three points, or “adequate”.
Mowat Court was celebrated in 2019 when it was named Scottish care home of the year.
During this recent visit to the facility, inspectors spokes to residents and said “everyone” was happy and complimentary of the staff.
The report added: “Some people were unable to tell us verbally about their experience of living in the home.
“We spent time observing how staff interacted with them and the impact this had on their well-being.
“Staff were visible in all areas of the service and engaged with people in a friendly and caring way.”
Gill Marshall, Mowat Court’s operational support manager, said: “The new report from the Care Inspectorate shows we have successfully met the requirements in the report published earlier this month.
“All team members have worked together to put right this short term drop in the home’s normally extremely high standards and this was recognised by the inspectors.
“The report recognises that we have deep cleaned people’s bedrooms, furniture and care equipment and decluttered communal areas to make it easier to maintain high standards of infection control.
“I’d like to thank the families who have been in touch with us to show their support and gratitude for the care given at this home.
“We are confident this was a short-term lapse and that our usual high standards will now be maintained.”
