The Old Rectory Nursing Home responds to CQC's safety concerns

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has said that it is satisfied that Southern Healthcare (Wessex) Ltd has made the urgent improvements that were required at The Old Rectory Nursing Home in Exeter.

Inspectors who made an unannounced visit to the home in Tiverton Road, Exeter, in August, found that its systems for the management of medicines now complied with the essential standards of quality and safety.

The visit followed concerns which had been raised during two previous inspections. In July 2011 the CQC issued a formal warning to Southern Healthcare (Wessex) Ltd, stating that it must make urgent improvements to the management of medicines or face further action.

Inspectors said that some individuals cared for by this Nursing Home were at risk of choking because records did not clearly state that they should not have their medicines given by mouth. Medicine records were not always sufficiently clear to show that people were receiving their medicines as they were prescribed by a doctor.

The home had not carried out audits of their medicines since the CQC inspected in January 2011, and the system for managing medicines was not robust enough to identify where errors had occurred.

Ian Biggs, Regional Director of CQC in the South West, said that inspectors had now found there had been a significant improvement to safety of the residents.

He said: "The law says that these are the standards that everyone should be able to expect. Providers have a duty to ensure they are compliant.

“On our earlier inspection, it was a matter of some concern that The Old Rectory was in breach of the regulations on the management of medicines.

“Our latest inspection has shown a real improvement. The onus is now on the provider to ensure that this continues. We will monitor the home to ensure these improvements are sustained and will not hesitate to take action if it becomes necessary."

If you need to register your health or social care organisation, or if you need support ensuring the ongoing compliance with CQC standards, then speak to one of our CQC experts today.

Chichester care provider terminates services following CQC identified concerns

The CQC released the following press release yesterday relating to a care provider in Chichester:

Following a recent inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), inspectors found the care provided was falling far short of the essential standards of quality and safety people should be able to expect.

Caring for You (Chichester) Ltd is a domiciliary care agency that provides personal care, support and assistance to people in their own homes. It provides services to people living in the Chichester, Arundel and surrounding area from the office base in the city centre.

Following a series of visits to Caring for You (Chichester) Ltd, CQC inspectors told the provider they judged people using the service to be at risk and would take urgent action to protect them as a result. In response, Caring for You (Chichester) Ltd agreed to voluntary cancellation of its registration. CQC registration is the legal licence for all health and social care providers to operate.

Alternative care was arranged for funded service users before the service closed and CQC worked closely with the local authority throughout the closure. West Sussex County Council assumed responsibility for all the people using the service - both local authority funded and private - and made arrangements to transfer care to another provider with minimal disruption.

CQC found Caring for You (Chichester) Ltd was not compliant with any of the essential standards of quality and safety and there were 10 major concerns.

Inspectors reported a range of concerns including staff lacking skills and experience, low staffing levels, poor documentation and peoples’ complaints not being recorded or resolved. The major concerns included:

Co-operating with other providers

Inspectors heard staff give a falsely positive report of improvements being made to professionals from the safeguarding team and the commissioning team at West Sussex County Council. This put people at risk because the agencies responsible for scrutiny of the service and funding of placements could not monitor the care given without accurate information.

Safeguarding people

There were documents relating to possible theft of large sums of money from people who use the service and instances where care documents were falsified. These had not been fully investigated or followed up and the final outcome had not been properly recorded. Although there was evidence of some disciplinary action being initiated, there was no evidence of a proper investigation and rationale for action.

Management of medicines

There were two complaints relating to evening medication being either missed or given too early as care staff made their last visit at 4-4.30 pm. CQC inspectors had major concerns about the level of medication errors and the lack of proper staff training. People were also not provided with assistance to take their medicines safely.

Roxy Boyce, Regional Director of CQC in the South East said: “The service provided by Caring for You (Chichester) Ltd has fallen far short of the standards people have a right to expect. This is very disturbing when you consider that many of those affected are frail and vulnerable people.

“CQC found clear evidence that the provider was not maintaining essential standards of quality and safety, meaning that people were exposed to significant risk of harm. Working with the local authority, we have now ensured the appropriate action has been taken to ensure that people are protected.

“The law says these are the standards that everyone should be able to expect when they receive care. Providers have a duty to ensure they are compliant – or face the consequences.”

If you need help demonstrating compliance with the CQC essential standards then give the Words Worth Reading Ltd team a call.

DATAPAC to create new jobs in Cork

The Technology firm Datapac has announced the creation of 20 jobs with the opening of a new office in Cork.

The roles, which will be created over the next 12 to 18 months at the facility in Ballincollig, are primarily in business development and technical support.

The company Datapac provides IT services to businesses including Boylesports and GlaxoSmithKline and currently employs 150 people in Ireland. The organisation has said that new partnership agreements with technology giants HP and EMC will help it expand its operations in response to growing demand.

The company’s general manager David Ward said the new facility “is a key strategic move for Datapac as we look to develop our business further in Cork and throughout the region. We are delighted to be creating these new jobs and opportunities in the technology sector in Cork.”

Country manager for EMC, Jason Ward, said: “We greatly value the experience and expertise Datapac has built up over the past 30 years. Its continued expansion through the opening of a Cork office to support the business, provides a great opportunity for us.”

Need help with application forms, resumes, cover letters or interview prep? Check out the Words Worth Reading Ltd website to see how we can help.

James Paget Hospital continues to fail nutrition standards

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) yesterday released a press release stating that it has issued a formal warning to James Paget University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust which says that it must make urgent improvements to standards of care.

The CQC first identified concerns about how the trust meets the nutritional needs of those in its care in April this year.

CQC inspectors, along with a practicing nurse and an ‘expert by experience’ made unannounced inspections to 100 NHS hospitals to check whether elderly people were treated with dignity and respect, and were receiving food and drink that met their needs.

At this time, CQC found that James Paget Hospital was not meeting essential standards of care in relation to dignity or nutrition, and told the trust it must make improvements.

The trust submitted an action plan to CQC detailing what changes it intended to make. However when CQC inspectors returned earlier this month they found standards of nutrition were still falling short of what people should be able to expect.

CQC has now issued a warning notice which demands that the trust make urgent improvements.

Frances Carey, regional director for CQC in the East of England, said: "We were very disappointed that when our inspectors returned to James Paget Hospital they did not see enough improvement in relation to the food and drink people receive. Proper nutrition and hydration is an important part of recovery, especially for elderly people.

"We will be making another unannounced visit to the hospital shortly and, when we do, we will expect the trust to be able to demonstrate it has made significant improvements.

"If we find the required progress has still not been made, we won’t hesitate to use our legal powers to protect the people who use this service.

"We have a range of enforcement powers which can be used, including prosecution, closure, or restriction of services."

Following the most recent visit to the hospital, inspectors found while there were some signs of improvement, further work was needed.

Inspectors found people were provided with a choice of nutritious food and hydration and that staff were generally kind and supportive. But the food was still not always suitable to meet the individual’s needs and people still did not always receive the support they required to maintain a good dietary and fluid intake.

Frances Carey added: "The law says that these are the standards that everyone should be able to expect. Providers have a duty to ensure they are compliant.

"This warning sends a clear and public message that James Paget University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust needs to address this issue as a matter of urgency or face serious consequences."

Need help ensuring that your care establishment is CQC compliant or CQC registered? Speak to one of our CQC experts today

What subjects are university students choosing to study?

The Guardian Online published a report today (26th September 2011), stating that according to the latest Higher Education Statistics Agency HESA, more UK students than ever before are going to university.

Over 500,000 students started university in 2009/10 with the number of first time degree students increasing steadily year on year since 2006/07. UCAS saw a 8.7% increase in student applications from the previous year.

With increased tuition fees due to be in place in 2012/13, it's not clear if the rise in applications will continue at the same rate.

Despite the increase in UCAS applications, acceptances and the number of first time full degree students increasing, those starting part-time Higher Education (HE) courses dropped in 2009/10 by -2.7%.

Mathematical sciences recorded the biggest percentage increase on the previous year as 26,225 students opted for the subject in 2009/10. This represents a 26.3% increase on the 2005/06 figure.

Business & administrative studies, mass communication & documentation and engineering & technology saw the biggest rises after mathematical sciences for full-time undergraduate students. For post-graduates, both architecture, building & planning and mass communications & documentation reported over 20% increases in subject selection.

The number of part-time staff at HE institutions increased by 3.4% whereas full-time staff increased by a slight 0.4%. Part-time staff has increased hugely since 2005/06 - there has been a near 20% rise, whereas full-time staff have increased by a mere 5.8% over the same period.

New London book and art festival

From Writers Online.co.uk

Jacqueline Wilson, Mackenzie Crook, Michael Morpurgo and Francesca Simon are among the guests at the inaugural Word Up festival in Dulwich, 22-24 October.

The celebration of children's literature promises to appeal to readers aged five upwards, with workshops, free activities and performances.

The Office star Mackenzie Crook will be launching his debut novel, about animalistic fairies being driven to extinction, The Windvale Sprites, Francesca Simon will reveal her latest venture, after Horrid Henry, and Michael Morpurgo will discuss War Horse with Clare Balding.

Other writers appearing include Meg Rosoff, Judith Kerr, Tim Bowler, Penelope Lively, John Hegley, Andy Stanton and Philip Ardagh.

Interested in writing? Visit our website to see how the Words Worth Reading Ltd team could help you pursue your literary ambition

The end of an era...Blue Peter annual scrapped

The Blue Peter annual, which first came out in 1965, will not be published because of plummeting sales figures.

The 2012 Blue Peter annual wasn't seen by retailers as being strong enough to make it into the top 25, out of around 200 competitors, to get mass distribution.

The sales figures for the 2011 annual were just 13,140. The Beano was the bestsellling annual of 2011, with 201,277 sales. The 2011 Doctorr Who annual sold 140,044 copies, and the Peppa Pig annual sold 133,651.

Ratings for the BBC TV show have also been in decline, dropping to less than 100,000 viewers.

Could this be the end of Blue Peter? No more, 'Here's one I prepared eariler'? Well, that really would be the end of an era.

Interested in writing? Take a look at our writer services to see how we could support your literary quest.