Chesterfield care home again ordered to make improvements by watchdog

The Woodlands on Wardgate Way, Holme Hall, was visited by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) last month and a report has now been published.

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The home has been rated as ‘requires improvement’ for the last five consecutive inspections.

The CQC said it carried out its check after receiving concerns from the local clinical commissioning group about ‘infection prevention and control, and risks associated with the environment’.

Its report states: “A lack of senior oversight and leadership had impacted on the service continuing to make required improvements to reach the expected rating of ‘good’. The provider’s inspection history demonstrates improvements have not been sustained and embedded.

“Ongoing improvements of the premises and environment had put people at potential risk of harm. There was a lack of planning, monitoring, risk management, priority and oversight of the scheduled works. This had compromised people's health and safety.

“Best practice guidance in the management of medicines had not been consistently followed. This increased the risk that people may not receive their prescribed medicines safely.”

Woodlands, which is operated by Midland Healthcare Limited, provides personal and nursing care for up to 50 people.

On the day of the inspection, 14 people were living at the home.

Some people were living with dementia and some had nursing care needs.

Woodlands’ website describes the home as ‘modern and friendly’.

The CQC report did highlight some positives about the home, including the fact that sufficient staff were deployed to meet people’s individual needs and safety, and people’s individual risks had been assessed and planned for.

The report adds: “We will meet with the provider following this report being published to discuss how they will make changes to ensure they improve their rating to at least ‘good’. We will work with the local authority to monitor progress. We will return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.”

Midland Healthcare Limited had not responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.

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