Inspectors' 'serious concerns' at West Lothian care home
A West Lothian care home was rated "weak" in a surprise inspection after a Covid outbreak which led to the deaths of 17 residents.
Serious concerns were raised about conditions inside Redmill Care Home in East Whitburn, which is operated by the company HC-One. The inspection report cited concern over infection prevention and control arrangements and staffing levels. The home's owners said "significant improvements" had been made. Redmill care home is registered to provide care for 68 people and it was one of the first care homes affected by the second wave of the virus. 'Multi-agency team' The first Covid case was detected in the home on 25 September. An incident management team was put into the home three days later. By 11 October, seven people had died. A total of 53 people - staff and residents - tested positive at the home. The home was being overseen by a multi-agency incident management team when the unannounced inspection took place on 15 October. HC-One confirmed on Thursday that a total of 17 residents are thought to have died as a result of the outbreak. The inspection report described staff struggling to cope in the depths of a crisis. Inspectors said they had serious concerns about the wellbeing of the residents, about infection prevention and control arrangements and about staffing levels. It said that there were concerns about residents who were dying at the time. The inspectors said they were not getting the attention they needed, staff were rushed and did not have the time to support them in a calm and unhurried manner. Requirements 'unmet' The Care Inspectorate issued a letter of serious concern with six requirements. Inspectors returned in the following weeks and found some improvements but the six requirements remained unmet. The service was rated as a two (weak) on a six-point scale. Local Labour MSP Neil Findlay has spoken to relatives of residents who died at Redmill. He said: "It's interesting because a multi-disciplinary team were sent in to help at the home and yet when the Care Inspectorate came after that event they still found a whole number of problems that were still there, so clearly these problems were deep-seated." HC-One said that as of Thursday there were no positive residents or staff members. A spokesman said: "This review took place during the early stages of an outbreak at the home and at a time when many of our core staff team were unable to work. "We were therefore disappointed with the Care Inspectorate's initial feedback which did not reflect the usual high-standards the home maintains in normal circumstances. "Nevertheless, in response, we worked exceptionally hard and when the Care Inspectorate visited 24 hours later they noted that significant improvements had been made. These were also maintained at their later visits." The company said it prioritised the health and wellbeing of residents and had embedded an area quality director at the home to provide additional support. 'Intervention and support' A spokesman for the West Lothian Health and Social Care Partnership said that Redmill was privately owned and that the owners were working with the Care Inspectorate to address the required improvements that were highlighted in the report. Adam Strachura, head of policy at Age Scotland, told the BBC he found the report "worrying". He said: "It is surprising with all that intervention and all that support and help, that there was still that high level of infection and impact on people's lives and deaths."