A north-east care home has been ordered to improve after some residents were left unable to eat and drink.
The Care Inspectorate visited Auchtercrag Care Home in Ellon earlier this month to assess the home’s response to the Covid pandemic, for which it was graded weak.
The inspectors’ report stated: “People had sufficient food and fluids brought to their rooms, however sometimes this was out of reach or people who required support to eat and drink did not receive it.
“One person who was asleep, had their lunch placed in front of them and was left to sleep while the meal went cold.”
It added: “People’s nutrition and hydration status was not appropriately monitored.
“We found that people regularly received significantly low levels of fluids or sometimes more than what had been recommended by professionals.
“There was no analysis of the information from these recordings and for this analysis to bring about change to the care and support.
“This meant that some people continued to have too little to drink.”
Although the home was praised for its well-stocked personal protective equipment (PPE), the report raised further concerns over clinical waste management, cluttered rooms, and an unclean kitchen servery.
A spokeswoman for Auchtercrag Care Home said: “The safety and wellbeing of our residents is our highest priority so, understandably, we are disappointed that standards have fallen short.
“We immediately took action to address the points raised following the inspection and are working closely with the Care Inspectorate and the local Health and Social Care Partnership to further improve the level of compliance in the home.
“We can reassure the families of our residents that we remain focussed on ensuring everyone at Auchtercrag Care Home receives the highest standards of personalised, quality care and support.”
