A CARE home slammed by the health watchdog last May has been told by inspectors that it needs to make further improvements.

Edgehill Care Home on Liden Drive remains the subject of safety concerns, according to the Care Quality Commission.

It was rated Requires Improvement following the inspection on December 5, scoring the same rating in three of the five areas assessed – safe, responsive and well-led.

The home was rated as Inadequate seven months earlier and placed in special measures after the CQC identified six areas where health regulations were not being met.

This time, inspectors highlighted safety issues around the management of medicines for the 46 people living there. 

They said: “At our last inspection the provider had failed to have effective systems in place to ensure the safe management of medicines.

“Not enough improvement had been made at this inspection. 

“Where medicines were prescribed to be taken ‘as required’ there were not always protocols in place to ensure people received their medicines when needed.”

And the CQC says there was no information in patients' care plans to help staff manage side-effects of high-risk medication, such as insulin.

In the report, inspectors added: “The registered manager did not have an overview of the quality of the service and did not take effective action to address issues when they were identified. 

"This put people at risk of not receiving safe care. 

“Where audits had identified issues, there was not a clear action plan identifying how issues would be addressed. 

“The registered manager had not completed the action plan to identify who was responsible for completing the actions and the date they needed to be completed by.”

But staff were complimented on their caring approach and the service was said to be effective.

A resident at Edgehill said: “Staff are brilliant. I sometimes need help and they are always happy to help.”

Staff were said to treat residents as individuals and had a positive impact.

An employee said: “I get really great support. I have the chance to talk about how I’m doing.”

Tim Buckley is the chief operating officer of Agincare Homes Holdings, which oversees Edgehill as well as a number of care home facilities across the country.

He said: “I am proud that the CQC inspectors have recognised the hard work and progress of the team, upgrading Edgehill’s CQC rating in each of the five inspection areas, albeit disappointed we achieved a Good rating for only effective and caring.

“The report highlights the team’s compassionate care, recognising how they take people’s views into account and involve residents in decisions about their care. 

"The inspectors were positive about the new online care planning tool, staff training, the range of activities on offer, and how staff take the time to treat residents as individuals.

“We are supporting the Edgehill team to continue and ensure improvements are sustainable, to make sure that all aspects of our residents’ care are being managed properly. 

"I am confident that the inspectors will see even more positive changes the next time they visit.”