The Cambridge care home residents not always respected says CQC

Residents of a care home run by one of the UK's largest providers have not always been treated with respect and dignity by staff, inspectors said.

The Cambridge care home, in the Chesterton area of the city, continues to be rated as requiring improvement by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

The news comes after Cambridgeshire County Council cancelled a £64m contract with provider HC-One.

HC-One said it was "relentlessly focused on improving".

The company has previously announced the closure of two care homes in Cambridgeshire, namely The Elms in Whittlesey, which was rated inadequate by the CQC, and The Manor House in Upwood, due to staffing issues.

At a third Cambridgeshire home, The Red House in Ramsey, the CQC said residents were found to be at risk of malnourishment.

The council said cancelling the contract "reflects how deeply disappointed we are by the poor performance of HC-One regarding The Elms".

The Cambridge care home provides accommodation, nursing and personal care to up to 90 older people, some of whom are living with dementia.

A CQC inspection in September and October said: "Action had not always been taken to mitigate risks to people.

"We found no evidence that people had been harmed, but further action was needed to ensure people were safe."

The report also said "staff did not always treat people with respect and dignity" and that there had been a "high use of agency staff in the home, however permanent staff were being recruited".

An inspection in March had also rated the home as requiring improvement. Inspectors said: "Not enough improvements had been made since the previous inspection to ensure that people received a good service."

A spokesperson for HC-One said: "As has been reported in recent weeks, we have faced a range of operational and local leadership challenges in the Cambridgeshire area that have led to our homes failing to meet the standards expected of them.

"This CQC report is therefore disappointing, but not unexpected given the context and the known challenges we are working to rapidly address.

"The Cambridge and all other HC-One homes in the area are now overseen by our new regional management team, and we have been making positive progress since the CQC's inspectors visited us for a targeted inspection at the end of September.

"We are relentlessly focused on improving and we will continue to work closely with the CQC and the local authority and external stakeholders to ensure that we can get care right for every resident."

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