Homecare Support, a care at home service contracted by the City of Edinburgh Council, has been told to make urgent improvements to in the care it provides to vulnerable people.
The Care Inspectorate has served a formal Improvement Notice (below) on Homecare Support, which is located on Lower Granton Road, following an inspection which raised concerns.
The notice lists three areas which require urgent improvement by March 31 2017: visit times, medication and staff training.
On visit times, the service must demonstrate to the Care Inspectorate that scheduled visits are agreed with people who use the service, and that all visits are carried out as scheduled and for the duration of time which has been agreed.
On medication, the service must demonstrate that procedures and practice promote the health and wellbeing of people who use the service. Homecare Support must make sure that people who use the service receive the right medication at the right time and keep a record of this. Where this has not happened, staff must record the reason why and this should be followed up by supervisors.
They must also ensure that staff members who are administering medication accurately record in the service user’s records what and when medication is administered; and they must ensure that systems are put in place to audit medication records and follow up on and record any problems identified. Where staff make a mistake with medication, this must be recorded and staff must check with a health professional whether anything needs to be done to help to keep people well.
Homecare Support must ensure they have a system for looking at mistakes which helps to reduce the number of mistakes made.
On staff training, the service must demonstrate to the Care Inspectorate that the training needs of all staff have been identified and met.
A spokesperson for the Care Inspectorate said: “The Improvement Notice we have issued clearly lays out the improvements we must see so that the care provided to people improves quickly. We will check on the progress made following this Improvement Notice and if we are not satisfied that the matters raised are addressed urgently we will not hesitate to take further action.
“We continue to work with The City of Edinburgh Council and this service to ensure standards improve.
“Everyone in Scotland has the right to safe, compassionate care which meets their needs and respects their rights.
“Anyone with a concern can contact our helpline on 0345 600 9527.”
A spokesman for Homecare Support said: “Homecare Support acknowledges that there have been failings in the quality of its service in Edinburgh over recent months and we are, and have been working, in partnership with the City of Edinburgh Council to bring about the needed improvements.
“We have put in place an action plan to resolve the issues highlighted by the Care Inspectorate, and our staff are working extremely hard putting it into effect. We are committed to getting the service right, and supporting our customers in the right way.”
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