'Inadequate' care home put in special measures
GoogleA care home has been placed into special measures after a watchdog rated it as "inadequate".
Springfield Lodge Care Home in West Rainton, County Durham, was inspected following previous concerns over medicines management and unsafe care.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) said action plans to address the issues had not let to improvements, which meant "people remained at risk of ongoing harm".
However, it added most people had spoken positively about the service they received and had described staff as "caring and kind".
Ascot Care, which runs the facility, has been contacted for a comment.
The care home provides accommodation for up to 40 residents, some of whom have physical disabilities or dementia.
Placing it into special measures means it will be kept under close review by the CQC and monitored to ensure improvements have been made.
Victoria Marsden, CQC deputy director of operations in the north of England, said: "When we visited Springfield Lodge, it was disappointing to see a deterioration in the quality of care being provided to people.
"Action plans to address previous concerns hadn't led to improvements which meant people remained at risk of ongoing harm."
'People at risk'
Inspectors assessed the care home between November 2024 and January 2025.
The overall rating for the service went down from "requires improvement" to "inadequate" following the visit, as did its ratings for being safe and well-led.
It was rated as "requires improvement" for being effective and responsive.
A CQC report said residents had told inspectors they felt safe at the service and appeared "happy and relaxed" around staff.
However, the assessment found care records and medicine management did not meet expected standards which "placed people at risk of harm".
"Leaders continued to manage medicines ineffectively. Some people weren't given medication as prescribed by their GP and some medications being out of date or unavailable which placed people at risk of ineffective treatment or harm," Ms Marsden said.
Care records were not "cohesive or regularly reviewed" and some contained contradictory information and guidance, according to the report.
The inspections also found not all staff had completed required training, including how to support people with a learning disability.
However, the facilities were clean and there was positive feedback on changes the recently appointed manager had been trying to make.
"It was also positive to see kind and caring interactions during our inspection, and people appeared to be happy and relaxed around staff," Ms Marsden added.
The CQC has issued a warning notice to the care home and inspectors will return to check on progress.