DEVASTATED staff at an Old Town care home have been chopped, changed and retrained in an effort to raise flagging standards exposed by the national health watchdog.

Princess Lodge Care Centre, in Curie Avenue, was slammed by the Care Quality Commission this summer after failing to meet all five standards expected of it.

Warning notices, a last resort used by the CQC for breaches in regulations, were served on the home, but two months later improvements are in evidence.

On September 18 inspectors made another unannounced inspection and found the Life Style Care-run institution was respecting and involving people who use services, but lacking in the care and welfare of users as well as meeting nutritional needs.

Felicity Somerville, Life Style’s clinical and operations director, said: “We were lucky to have the support of the majority of the relatives, who were coming to the staff and saying, ‘We can’t understand, we think the staff are good’.

“Everyone works in the care world because we care and when things are judged as not meeting the standards and having shortfalls, everyone feels it individually, very acutely.

“Everybody was devastated when the report came in, but sometimes it’s good to have that outside view because people sometimes think everything going on is fine and then an external body comes in and says you could be doing this a lot better.”

Ms Somerville said Julie Heenan, a manager from another of the firm’s homes, was steadying the ship while several staff had left since the CQC publication.

Ms Somerville said meals and food options for those on a pureed diet also needed improvement, which was being addressed.

She accepted staff had been old-fashioned in their approach and not always competent despite training.

Ms Somerville said: “When there are issues around how we empower and train our staff, it does take a while to build up their confidence as a team again.”

“That’s not a criticism, it’s how we nurture and build them up. There’s been a lot of input and work alongside nurses and care staff to actually help them to understand a different way and approach to how they care.”

Another CQC visit is expected later this month or early December.

See the latest report at www.cqc.org.uk/location/1-116037192