The care home will remain in special measures after another damning assessment
The care home will remain in special measures after another damning assessment
A south Liverpool care home left residents at risk of abuse, unable to escape from potential fire hazards and appearing unkempt with care “undermining their dignity,” a damning assessment has found.
Since February 2023, Waverley Care Home near Sefton Park has been mired in special measures after serious concerns were raised by inspectors from the Care Quality Commission. A report published last January found black mould and a staircase falling away from the wall at the home that cares for 12 people.
A fresh assessment has now revealed while some elements have been amended, residents remained at risk and often found “unkempt.” Such was the state of the home, CQC bosses said in their findings they had to make Liverpool Council safeguarding teams and even Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service aware of the shortfalls.
The home – operated by Daughters of Mary Mother of Mercy – was inspected on September 5 and 18 last year with officials concluding in their report that changes required at Waverley had not been made. This included a failure to manage medicines or how to support people safely.
One occasion it was said when a resident at the home sustained a head injury, staff failed to refer this to the city council’s safeguarding team. This did not protect people at the home from abuse or the risk of abuse.
Additionally, faulty bedrails on beds made left some people at risk of falling out. The report said: “The fault was logged by staff in the maintenance book some weeks prior to our site visit.
“No action had been taken by management to ensure the fault was rectified, placing the person at risk of avoidable harm. On the second day of the assessment the person had moved to a new bedroom with new bedrails that were working, however, we saw the air flow mattress monitor on the bed was flashing indicating it was faulty.”
No handles had been attached to the door of a new bedroom preventing easy entry or exit from the approved fire door. The inspectors said this placed residents at risk of being trapped in the event of an emergency such as a blaze breaking out.
Many of the doors were also said to not fit properly and were ineffective should a fire start. Cracked crockery was found on both days, with infant beakers being used for people to drink from.
CQC officials said this was “undermining their dignity” while some people’s nails were long and dirty, with some residents to be “unkempt.”
Their report added: “Observations of the environment found items and fixtures as not dignified or fit for purpose. For example, towels and bedding were thread bare.
“Curtains were hanging off the rails and did not fit windows appropriately letting in light when drawn closed.” The home will remain in special measures ahead of a follow up inspection.
The ECHO contacted Daughters of Mary Mother of Mercy for comment on two occasions ahead of publication but received no response.