Residents hurt in fight at 'inadequate' care home

A care watchdog says the Old Vicarage in Ludham will remain in special measures until improvements are made

A care home where two residents were "seriously hurt" in a fight has "deteriorated further", a health watchdog has said.

The Old Vicarage in Ludham, Norfolk, which cares for 25 elderly residents and dementia patients, has been rated inadequate by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) following an inspection in January.

Inspectors found concerns around safety, accident record-keeping and medicine management.

Ashley George, chief executive of the Ashley Care Group, which runs the home, said "significant improvements" had been made since the inspection, and that he was "devastated" by the late publication of the report.

The care home was first rated inadequate and placed into special measures last year after inspectors found concerns around staff training, delays in resident's receiving care and falls not being properly reported.

'Fire safety risks'

Stuart Dunn, CQC deputy director of operations in the East of England, said some levels of care had "deteriorated further".

"It was very concerning that there wasn't always a complete record of accidents and incidents, and managers didn't support staff to learn from them to avoid the same things happening again," he said.

"For example, two people using the service got into a physical fight when no staff were around, and both were seriously hurt.

"The same situation had happened before with the same people, but care plans weren't updated to try and prevent it from happening again."

The CQC has also referred the care home to Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service for additional support following concerns around fire safety risks.

However, inspectors praised the home for allowing residents to speak to family members over the phone when they wished, and for staff speaking to people "in a kind manner".

'Worked tirelessly'

Mr George insisted the care home had worked "tirelessly" over the past six months to improve its services and rebuild trust, which included working with an independent consultant.

"We have been communicating with the CQC every month sending all action plans and updating them on the new governance systems that are now in place," he said.

"They know the report doesn't reflect where we are now... The late release of this report negatively impacts our team and the families we support."

Responding to Mr George's claim, a CQC spokesperson added: "[The delay] was partly due to internal system issues at CQC which increased the time needed to review evidence and give the provider the chance to review the factual accuracy of the draft report.

"We have apologised to The Old Vicarage for this delay."

The CQC said the Old Vicarage would be kept under close review to ensure "rapid and widespread improvements" were being made and to "keep people safe while this happens".