Some people at Bedford care home weren't spoken to by staff for up to THREE HOURS

A care home in Elstow has been placed in special measures over the attitude of some staff.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) rated Elstow Lodge ‘inadequate’ overall in an inspection – as well as ‘inadequate’ in other categories, namely responsiveness and leadership.

The residential care home – in Wilstead Road – caters for up to nine people with autism and learning difficulties. And despite our attempts to contact the lodge earlier this week, it has so far yet to provide a statement.

You can read the full report for yourself here

Inspectors said: “The service had a negative culture that was at risk of becoming a closed culture. Staff were not supporting people to have a good quality of life or achieve good outcomes.”

And they added: “There were not enough staff on shift at all times to support people in a meaningful way. We observed there to be a visible lack of interaction with people when two staff were on shift. People spent a long time without staff interaction and staff told us it was not possible to support people with tasks such as preparing meals.”

Inspectors went on to say: “People went for long periods of time without any interaction from the staff team, who were busy completing other jobs such as cleaning or cooking. Some people were not spoken with by staff for upwards of three hours."

The CQC also criticised some staff for their lack of kindness and compassion.

Inspectors said: “On our first visit to the service a person requested a hot chocolate. This was not given to them, despite them asking numerous times. Staff told the person to wait until later and gave them a time, however the person was unable to tell the time. This caused the person some upset and anxiety. The person did not receive their hot chocolate until six hours after they first requested it. Despite us feeding this back to the management team, the same thing happened to the person on our second visit to the service.”

During the health watchdog’s three unannounced visits in July it found:

People were not supported to pursue their interests

People were not always supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives

Staff were not promoting people to try new things which may have enhanced their wellbeing

The registered manager did not check staff competency to perform their job roles in all areas

People were not always receiving kind and compassionate care

Staff did not always protect and respect people's privacy and dignity

The service did not look homely, with inspectors observing it felt more like a workplace for staff than the place they called home

However, the report did find:

People sometimes received kind and compassionate care from a staff team who had got to know them as individuals

People were supported to live healthy lifestyles and staff members promoted healthy choices in areas such as eating and drinking

Staff kept people's home environment clean and safe

People and relatives felt they or their family member were safe

Inspectors added: “Despite our findings we also saw staff speak with people kindly. Staff were patient and understanding when speaking with people and supporting them with aspects of support such as eating and drinking. When staffing levels allowed, staff supported people to be independent.”

The report added: “This service has been rated inadequate or requires improvement for the last two consecutive inspections.

"We have identified breaches in relation to safe care and treatment of people, staffing levels, people being treated with dignity and respect, people receiving personalised care and the way the service is managed at this inspection.”

The health watchdog also gave the service a ‘requires improvement’ rating in the safety, effectiveness and caring categories.