An Aberdeen care home that left residents sat in wheelchairs and hoist slings for “extended periods of time” has been told to do better.
Inspectors attended Fairview House Care Home in Bridge of Don earlier this month to see if improvements had been made following two visits in November.
They noted that the Omicron had been “challenging”, particularly for staffing.
Rating its Covid response as weak, the inspectors said that despite these pressures staff much prioritise “respectful care” of residents.
They were particularly concerned that some residents had been left in transit wheelchairs – those used by porters or staff to move people from one room to another as opposed to a manual chair – and hoist slings for extended periods of time.
The Care Inspectorate report said: “The Omicron variant has been extremely challenging, particularly in terms of staffing. We acknowledge that the service needs to prioritise people’s care and support.
“Staff were kind and caring but were focused on moving from one task to another. This meant they had little time to interact with people or to check they were settled, comfortable or happy.
“As a result, people were left sitting in transit wheelchairs or on hoist slings for extended periods of time as staff had no time to change their position.”
More must be done for infection control
Fairview House has 103 bedrooms for over 65s and up to seven younger “named people” and is run by Barchester Healthcare.
Inspectors made an unannounced visit on January 10 to check if the improvements they requested in November had been acted upon.
Some – including bettering the nutritional care of residents – had been, although others had not.
Inspectors praised the kind and caring interactions they observed between staff and residents, and noted people living in the home “appeared contented”.
However, in evaluating the quality of what was provided, inspectors described the care and support provided during the Covid-19 pandemic as “2, weak” after considering a range of factors such as infection control, staffing arrangements and general health and wellbeing.
They noted that a “detailed action plan” had been implemented following the previous inspections, but said they were still concerned about Fairview’s “quality assurance systems and processes and how people were supported to get the most out of life”.
The report adds: “Staff need to support people to live a dignified life, including assistance to move around, sit comfortably and take care of their appearance.
“We expect services to support people to get the most out of life, with social interactions and activities. We accept that when staff absences happen this can be difficult, however, the service should still be able to deliver safe, dignified, and respectful care.
“We found the service had made significant improvements regarding the four outstanding areas for improvement.
“Two of these were addressed. However, the improvements relating to infection control
practices and care planning were not fully embedded into practice.”
‘Developing a robust action plan to address the issues raised’
A spokeswoman for Barchester said: “We take the findings of the Care Inspectorate very seriously and recognise that changes need to continue to be made.
“As such we are developing a robust action plan to address the issues raised in the report, which is being closely managed by a new general manager along with the senior team for the region.
“We are glad to see that the report reflects the improvements in nutritional and hydration support, and the compassion of the home’s staff in treating residents with kindness and care.
She added: “We would like to reassure everyone of our commitment to provide the highest quality of care and emphasise that the health and wellbeing of those living at Fairview House is at the forefront of everything we do.”
During the height of the Covid pandemic, The Press and Journal took an in depth look at the numbers of deaths in care homes across the region.