Moorhead Rest Home in Accrington placed in special measures

Moorhead Rest Home in Whalley Road has been rated inadequate by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and has been issued three warning notices to protect people following an inspection in August.

The home is run by M.M.R Care Limited and provides personal care for people living with dementia, physical disabilities, or sensory impairments.

The home was previously managed by a different provider, where it was rated good by CQC.

Inspectors found not all safeguarding incidents had been reported or referred to the local authority or to CQC, and there was said to be “little evidence the service learnt lessons when abuse was suspected.”

Food items were found in the kitchen that were beyond their best-before date, with one item being more than a year out of date, and staff’s personal items were stored on the floor beside food items.

Moorhead Rest Home, Accrington (Image: Google Maps)

Patients’ care records lacked detail and risk assessments were missing, and records showed people had accidents and referrals to other health professionals were needed, but this did not always take place.

Some equipment was not being checked regularly. Staff used hoists and slings to assist people, but there was no evidence the equipment was being serviced properly, one sling was found to be visibly frayed, and nurse call bells were not regularly tested.

Staff had not received all the training required for their roles, such as how to safely move people, and there were poor records to show if people had the capacity to consent – two people were found to be sharing a bedroom without appropriate consent in place.

CQC issued three warning notices following the inspection to focus the provider’s attention on making significant improvements around effective management, staffing, and staff care.

The overall rating of the home as well as the areas of safe, caring, and well-led have now decreased from good to inadequate.

Effective and responsive have decreased from good to requires improvement.

READ MORE: Burnley care provider rated good by Care Quality Commission

Sheila Grant, CQC director of operations in the north, said: “When we inspected Moorhead Rest Home we found it was being poorly managed and safety issues had been missed by leaders, which put people at risk of harm.

“We found the home environment was unsafe. There were no window restrictors to reduce the risk of people falling out of windows and wardrobes weren’t secured to walls.

"People could access open cupboards with cleaning chemicals and electrical wires, and cluttered wheelchairs and walking frames made trip hazards in corridors.

“On the first day of inspection, the lift was broken which meant some people had to stay in their bedrooms all day.

"Staff said it frequently broke down, but we found leaders didn’t have a plan in place to support people who couldn’t access the communal areas without the lift.

“Additional safety risks hadn’t been addressed. One person who was at high risk of falls didn’t have any additional checks or equipment in place to alert staff, such as fall sensor mats in their room.

"We also saw chipped paintwork throughout the home and rusty items including toilet frames, which would make effective cleaning and infection prevention difficult.

“There wasn’t enough staff to keep people safe and meet their needs. People were left unattended in communal areas for long periods of time and we were told staff didn’t always respond to requests for help in a timely manner.

"On the first day of inspection, there was a shortage of staff and agency staff only arrived in the afternoon.

“We also found medicines weren’t being managed safely. Staff left tablets out in two people’s bedrooms for them to take later, but there was no risk assessment to show this was safe.

"Staff who were trained to give medicines weren’t on duty overnight and although leaders audited how medicines were managed, they hadn’t identified the issues we found or recorded actions taken.

READ MORE: Blackburn care home rated good by Care Quality Commission

“We have told Moorhead Rest Home where we expect to see significant improvements and will continue to monitor them closely during this time to ensure people living at the home are safe.

"We will return to check on their progress and will not hesitate to take further action if we are not assured people are receiving the care they have a right to expect.”

Despite the failings, the CQC did note that people shared positive feedback on staff, and inspectors witnessed staff being kind to people and treating them with dignity.

Staff also supported people who had concerns to express their views, however, there was no evidence of recent feedback forms being completed by people or their loved ones.