A NURSING home has been closed after inspectors found managers failed to improve practices which left residents at risk.

The Care Quality Commission, the care industry watchdog, took enforcement action against Highfield House Residential Home, at Haswell, near Peterlee, east Durham, following a damning visit earlier in the year.

The home, for elderly people suffering from dementia, specialised in caring for those with Alzheimer’s disease.

It was given an “inadequate” rating in January and put into special measures.

Inspectors were particularly concerned about the safe administration of medicines which have sedative effect, along with food hygiene, hot water use and fire safety.

The CQC carried out an unannounced visit at the 25-bed home in July and August, but found sub-standard practices were still in place.

Inspectors concluded the care being provided by Susan Burns and Marion Burns, was “failing to provide care which was safe, effective, caring, responsive or well led”.

Debbie Westhead, deputy chief inspector of adult social care in the north with the CQC, said: “The care provided at Highfield House was of a very poor standard. To be rated inadequate in four categories and requires improvement in the fifth, represents very poor care and is simply not good enough.”

Inspectors found medication administration procedures and systems were not robust and did not protect people living at the home from risk associated with poor medicines management.

Medicines that have a sedative effect were found to be used without guidance or sufficient agreed practice to safeguard and protect people.

None of the staff or the registered manager had been trained in medicines management to update them in line with current industry guidance.

There were gaps in significant parts of some people’s care planning records which meant that staff did not have plans in place which they could use to guide their practice and take appropriate action.

Service users and staff at the home were not protected from the risk of water borne infections such as Legionella and actions to detect, prevent and control the spread of infections had not been completed.

Ms Westhead said: “We found the care provided at Highfield House home fell short of the standards we expect services to provide. I am concerned that the providers have not acted in a timely fashion to achieve compliance, meet service users’ needs and adequately protect them from receiving poor care.”

The providers’ registration was cancelled as part of enforcement action taken on October 4.

No one at the home was available for comment.