Residents left 'sitting in a chair of urine' as care home in Keynsham is now in special measures
A council-run care home in Keynsham is in "special measures" after an inspection found that residents had been left in their own urine.
Charlton House Community Resource Centre provides support to people living with dementia, older and younger people, and those living with a physical disability.
A report published on Friday (November 25) told how people living at Charlton House had suffered "avoidable harm". Records showed one resident had been at risk of hypothermia while records suggested another had not eaten or drunk anything for two days.
The inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) looked at five criteria, whether the service is safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led.During this inspection, due to the nature of the concerns raised, they undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of "safe", "responsive" and "well-led" only. Their subsequent findings lowered the home's overall rating to "inadequate".
Charlton House was visited by three inspectors in October and November. Before that, it was inspected by the CQC in June when it scored "requires improvement".
When the inspectors checked records at the care home, they found that one resident had been discovered with their window "wide open", only a sheet for warmth and they were "very cold to touch". The person's temperature had dropped to 35C, putting them at risk of hypothermia.
Another resident fell and trapped their arm, causing it to go "purple", yet staff failed to call a GP until two hours later. Others were left in their rooms with the doors closed and alarms switched off.One person experienced two unseen falls while their bedroom door was closed and the sensors were switched off. Another had no food or drink records recorded for two days. Inspectors also found that staff had used their mobile phones to covertly film people without their consent and had mocked a person with dementia.
The inspectors said comments from people included: "Staff are good but not enough" and, "If I press the buzzer before lunch, it can be 15 mins to go to the loo". But they said the permanent staff were kind to them and "quite nice and helpful".
'We just haven’t got the staff' - Nurses at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital speak out over pressures.Comments from relatives included, 'staff are lovely but disorganised' and, 'on certain days it seems two people on the whole floor'. During the inspection, the provider arranged for staff from elsewhere in the organisation to work in the service. The inspectors were told this did not usually happen and was because the "CQC was there."
The council will have to send a report to the CQC detailing what action it is going to take to put things right. The regulator will inspect again in six months to check significant improvements have been made.Councillor Alison Born, the cabinet member for adult services and council house building, said: "Our purpose is to improve people’s lives which makes reading this report very distressing. No amount of explanation can get away from the fact that we have let people down and I want to apologise to the residents and their families who will find this report very difficult to read."I want to reassure residents and their families that an action plan to improve the care provided at Charlton House is in place, which the Care Quality Commission has approved. We took immediate action following the inspection and this will continue. We have written to families and met with them and we will continue to keep everyone updated as we work to make the improvements that are needed."We are all aware of the crisis facing the care sector. It is a fact that staffing in adult social care is at breaking point. However, the safety of our residents has to be our priority and we agree with the CQC that some aspects of the care residents received were unacceptable."