“Failure to learn lessons”: Luton care home still ‘requires improvement’ after inspection

A Luton care home has been told to make changes after Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspectors found that it still ‘requires improvement’.

A report into the Georgiana, on Compton Avenue, was released this week following a visit from inspectors in February. The home was previously inspected in April 2021 and told to make changes to its service.

Heritage Group, which runs the Georgiana, said: “We are aware of the issues raised in the CQC report. A detailed action plan has been developed and we are working closely with the local authority to address the shortfalls.

“We care deeply about our residents and staff and are doing everything we can to improve the service we deliver.”

While the care home looked and smelled clean and staff followed good infection control measures, the report says the service did not always keep its residents safe. Despite there being no evidence that harm had come to any of the residents, safety issues were raised by inspectors.

They said fire safety risk assessments were not detailed and, in some cases, had the wrong information, meaning that “people would be at risk of serious harm if there was a fire at the service”. Medicines were not managed correctly, with topical cream being left out in communal areas and bedrooms.

There were enough staff to support people, but they were not speaking with residents outside of their key duties. The report said: “They stood waiting until people needed essential support such as support to have a drink or to move around the service.”

It added: “‘Interactions with staff were recorded as a tick box with no indication of whether this was meaningful for people or not.”

The Georgiana was handed the same rating nearly two years ago, but not enough changes had been made at the recent visit to lift its rating. The inspectors said: “The provider did not visit the service to ensure people were receiving good quality care.

“There had been a failure to learn lessons from inspections of the provider's other services meaning improvements could not be made or sustained at the service.”

During the visit, inspectors saw some kind interactions between people and staff. However, people were not always treated with kindness and compassion, with staff referring to people as 'he' or 'she' or by their room number, rather than their name. One person told the inspectors:''Some staff know me, but others do not really have a clue. I have to remind them how I like things done.’'

Despite the issues raised, family members were happy with the service. One relative said: ''I cannot fault the staff team. [Family member] has gone from strength to strength and has their life back since they started living at Georgiana Care Home.'' The home had helped to meet people’s spiritual needs by having a religious service visit the home.

Residents told the CQC that they wanted more activities outside of the home, with one saying, ''We went out for [social pastime] last year. This was lovely but we have not been since. I do not like sitting around so much.”

People at the care home and their families did not know who the manager was, but the manager were passionate about making improvements.