Community / Walter and Joan Gray centre owner ‘disappointed’ by strongly critical inspection
THE OWNER of a Scalloway care home which received a strongly critical inspection report says it is “disappointed” that major failures were discovered.
Fire doors not working, a lack of access to drinking water and a serious staffing shortfall were among the issues found at the Walter and Joan Gray care centre late last year.
While some positives were noted, the home – which is owned by CrossReach – was rated as “weak” in three key areas by Care Inspectorate Scotland during a surprise visit in November.
CrossReach, which runs the home for the Church of Scotland, said it was unhappy that deficiencies in its management of safety and quality were uncovered.
“The safety of those within our care is our primary concern,” a CrossReach spokesperson said.
“Steps have already been taken to address all of the issues noted and we are working hard to make the necessary changes.”
Inspectors found a lack of cover during a cook’s absence had led to care users eating meals either bought from nearby restaurants or re-heating food brought in to them.
And care users had “limited access to fresh drinking water”, which meant they “relied on staff identifying when they needed a drink”.
“This meant people were at risk of significant harm from eating food that was not safely prepared and not having enough support to keep hydrated,” the report stated.
Carpets, heaters, water coolers and chairs were “dusty and dirty” in some places, with some lounges and communal areas “used to store broken furniture and other items”.
Several fire doors were not working properly, inspectors found on their three-day visit, which meant people would have been “at risk in the event of a fire”.
Inspectors also found that a lack of an activity co-ordinator had meant care users had gone “long periods of time with minimal interaction or stimulation”.
“This meant that people did not have sufficient opportunities to spend their time in a fulfilling way,” it said.
And while the service had “identified a number of people experiencing weight loss”, it was not clear to the inspectors “how they had been supported to improve their nutritional intake”.
“This meant that people were at risk of health issues related to weight loss,” Care Inspectorate Scotland said.
“People had limited involvement in planning meals and their options were very limited during the time of the inspection due to the cook being on leave.”
At the heart of the issue was a care home “heavily dependent on the use of agency staff” to fill gaps in staffing, the Care Inspectorate said.
“The service had experienced a period of high staff turnover and was relying on agency staff and newly recruited staff, with limited experience, to fill key roles,” it said.
“We saw that agency staff were working excessive hours in some instances.
“Agency seniors held a high level of responsibility for ensuring people’s wellbeing, this created a risk as they did not have adequate rest breaks.
“The service had vacancies across key areas including the kitchen, housekeeping, activities and care staff.
“Over reliance on more experienced staff had created workload pressures and some staff feeling overwhelmed by their workload.”
CrossReach said recruitment “remains a challenge for this service”, as well as the care sector as a whole.
However, it said it was confident it could make improvements requested by Care Inspectorate Scotland in the weeks and months to come.
“We will be working with our local authority partners to help find a solution to the current staffing situation and are already engaged in discussion with them on that issue,” a spokesperson added.
Despite its critical assessment of the Scalloway home, the Care Inspectorate did find that the setting was “warm and comfortable” and people’s rooms had been “personalised with lots of photographs and personal items.”
Several rooms had also recently been refurbished, it said, and had improved ensuite facilities which bettered care users’ access and independence.
The care home’s leadership were also rated as “adequate”, along with the planning of care and support.
Become a member of Shetland News
Shetland News is asking its many readers to consider paying for membership to get additional features and services: -
- Remove non-local ads;
- Bookmark posts to read later;
- Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
- Hide membership messages;
- Comments open for discussion.
If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a member of Shetland News by either making a single payment, or setting up a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription.
Already a member? Sign in to hide this message.
