Hospice Placed Into Special Measures by CQC After Three Damming Inspections

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has placed St Joseph’s Hospice in Sefton, Merseyside into special measures following an inspection in July.

The hospice in Ince Road, Thornton, provides care and support for people with progressive, degenerative conditions and for people with brain injury and terminal illness. The hospice also provides end of life care and support to terminally ill people and their families. There were 25 people using their services at the time of inspection.

The CQC has placed conditions on the hospice’s registration including preventing further admissions until the provider can demonstrate significant improvement.

Inspectors found:

• Concerns around the way some medicines were administered and recorded which placed people at high risk of harm.
• That the hospice did not always provide effective assessment and monitoring of pain.
• Although people reported positive experiences, there were examples of care where people's privacy and dignity were not being respected.
• That staff did not always follow the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 when people were unable to give consent.

Debbie Westhead, Deputy Chief Inspector for Adult Social Care, said “People are entitled to services providing safe, effective, responsive and high quality care. We found that St Joseph’s Hospice, although providing a highly-valued service, was falling short of the standards that are required.

“It is a matter of concern that on three successive inspections we have identified significant areas for improvement. At this latest inspection in July, we found some of the same safety issues remained, but we also found fresh concerns.

“We have now taken action to ensure there are no further admissions until these matters are dealt with properly. A period in special measures will allow the hospice to seek the support it needs to address our concerns and protect the people in their care. We are working closely with partners including clinical commissioning groups to ensure people’s safety.”