Which? reveals damning results of care homes investigation
14:14 - 21/04/2011
Which? reveals damning results of car...
An investigation carried out by independent consumer body Which? has raised serious concerns about the standards of care in residential and nursing homes in the UK.
As part of the investigation three actors spent a week in four randomly selected care homes across the UK. Their findings have raised concerns about potential abuse, poorly skilled staff, the lack of activity for residents, health and safety and nutrition.
In one case, the behaviour of staff towards residents was deemed so worrying that the consumer rights group decided to report the home to care home regulator, the Care Quality Commission (CQC). The CQC have immediately suspended admissions to the home in question and are in the midst of investigating the claims.
Researchers were also worried about the lack of activity provided for residents in the homes that they visited. It is a statutory requirement to provide activities yet one witness reported that none of the daily activities listed on the home’s timetable took place. The investigation also uncovered concerns about standards of hygiene and health and safety in two of the homes visited. Reports refer to dirty facilities, damp, exposed wires and blocked fire escapes. Two of the homes were also identified as failing to provide nutritious or adequately sized meals for residents. In some cases, residents who needed assistance to eat were not given it.
Which? is now working with the CQC and Age UK to address each of the issues they uncovered and discuss concerns about the sector. A spokesman for the regulator has highlighted the fact that the Which? report used a very small sample and that there is no evidence to suggest that the findings are representative of all care homes across the country.
Commenting on the investigation, Dame Jo Williams, Chair of the CQC, said: “The evidence Which? shared with us describes care that falls below what people using social care services have a right to expect – in one case so seriously that we acted immediately to ensure admissions to the home were suspended, and are now considering the best action for residents currently living there.
“CQC listens to the views and experiences of people who use services and look at what data tells us in order to identify possible risks, then reviews and inspects services. [...] Where necessary, we require improvements against clear timescales or take enforcement action, following up to ensure these improvements have been delivered.”
First Response Training offers top quality health and social care training courses which have been carefully developed by their dedicated Head of Quality and Curriculum and mapped to the Common Induction Standards and CQC requirements. Courses also link to the new Diploma in Health and Social Care (Level 2).
Managing Director Perry Leeks says: “The findings of this investigation are shocking and we can only hope that this sub-standard care is not general across all care homes.
"One of the key ways to ensure that people receive the best quality care is to ensure that all staff members are properly skilled and trained to deliver in their roles. We can offer a wide range of health and social care training courses, including Safeguarding of Vulnerable Adults, CIEH Level 2 Health and Hygiene in Health and Social Care, Health and Safety in Care and Nutrition and Healthy Eating, to name just a few.
"Please call us today on 0800 310 2300 to find out more.”
As part of the investigation three actors spent a week in four randomly selected care homes across the UK. Their findings have raised concerns about potential abuse, poorly skilled staff, the lack of activity for residents, health and safety and nutrition.
In one case, the behaviour of staff towards residents was deemed so worrying that the consumer rights group decided to report the home to care home regulator, the Care Quality Commission (CQC). The CQC have immediately suspended admissions to the home in question and are in the midst of investigating the claims.
Researchers were also worried about the lack of activity provided for residents in the homes that they visited. It is a statutory requirement to provide activities yet one witness reported that none of the daily activities listed on the home’s timetable took place. The investigation also uncovered concerns about standards of hygiene and health and safety in two of the homes visited. Reports refer to dirty facilities, damp, exposed wires and blocked fire escapes. Two of the homes were also identified as failing to provide nutritious or adequately sized meals for residents. In some cases, residents who needed assistance to eat were not given it.
Which? is now working with the CQC and Age UK to address each of the issues they uncovered and discuss concerns about the sector. A spokesman for the regulator has highlighted the fact that the Which? report used a very small sample and that there is no evidence to suggest that the findings are representative of all care homes across the country.
Commenting on the investigation, Dame Jo Williams, Chair of the CQC, said: “The evidence Which? shared with us describes care that falls below what people using social care services have a right to expect – in one case so seriously that we acted immediately to ensure admissions to the home were suspended, and are now considering the best action for residents currently living there.
“CQC listens to the views and experiences of people who use services and look at what data tells us in order to identify possible risks, then reviews and inspects services. [...] Where necessary, we require improvements against clear timescales or take enforcement action, following up to ensure these improvements have been delivered.”
First Response Training offers top quality health and social care training courses which have been carefully developed by their dedicated Head of Quality and Curriculum and mapped to the Common Induction Standards and CQC requirements. Courses also link to the new Diploma in Health and Social Care (Level 2).
Managing Director Perry Leeks says: “The findings of this investigation are shocking and we can only hope that this sub-standard care is not general across all care homes.
"One of the key ways to ensure that people receive the best quality care is to ensure that all staff members are properly skilled and trained to deliver in their roles. We can offer a wide range of health and social care training courses, including Safeguarding of Vulnerable Adults, CIEH Level 2 Health and Hygiene in Health and Social Care, Health and Safety in Care and Nutrition and Healthy Eating, to name just a few.
"Please call us today on 0800 310 2300 to find out more.”
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