Worst rating for Middleton care home leaving residents 'at risk of abuse'

In a report published last week, regulator, the Care Quality Commission, heavily criticised management at Lyndhurst Residential Care Home, located on Manchester Old Road, and said residents at the home were at risk of harm and abuse due to failures by staff.

The provider has been given an official warning for breaching regulations on safe care and treatment, and good governance.

Residents left unwashed

Records showed that residents were not being regularly showered at the home, and medication, including antibiotics, was being missed or given incorrectly.

Inspectors said the home manager was unable to give examples of any lessons learned from mistakes.

The report went on to say that staffing levels were not safe – with no permanent senior staff and a large amount of agency staff working at the home.

One relative of a resident called the levels of staffing "appalling".

The home, inspected on multiple dates throughout August, was also referred to the fire prevention team as evacuation plans were out of date and not all staff were trained.

It was given an overall rating of "inadequate".

Broken down, the care home was told it was "inadequate" in safety and leadership, and required improvement in its responsiveness.

Inadequate is the lowest rating given out by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), with other ratings "requires improvement", "good", and "outstanding" all higher possible ratings.

The home, which provides support to older people, some of whom live with dementia, was previously told it required improvement.

Safety concerns

Inspectors said safety concerns had not been addressed, and systems were not in place to ensure residents received safe support to take their medicines – with inaccurate records completed retroactively on what medicines had been taken, and medicine missing from storage that staff couldn’t explain.

Family members of those in the home told inspectors that staff "keep getting the medicines mixed up".

Inspectors also said infection control practices were unsafe – with several members of staff not wearing face masks to protect residents from the risk of Covid infection.

Inspectors also found that accidents, such as falls, were not being recorded – with the folder last updated more than two months before inspectors arrived.

Complaints received by the home were also not being logged, including some which had been passed to the home by official inspectors.

Risk of abuse

While no evidence was found of people being harmed, inspectors said residents were at risk of abuse as incidents were not being properly reported.

Patients’ personal records were also being improperly stored – including on staff members’ and management’s personal phones and laptops, as well as in unlocked rooms.

The home has been told it is breaching the law, including regulations under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014.

However, the home did support residents to have visits from their loved ones, and peoples’ communication needs were being met, including through the use of picture cards, large print, and audio books.

Two other areas, whether it is effective caring is ranked as "good".

Nobody from the care home was available to speak to The Oldham Times when contacted.