A HEALTHCARE boss has defended a Darlington care home after an inspection found medicines were not always managed safely and "more staff" were needed.

Darlington Manor Care Home on Falmer Road, which provides care for up to 60 older people and specialises in care for adults with dementia, was recently downgraded by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) after inspectors identified a number of concerns.

The care home, which up until its last inspection had been rated good in May 2017, was downgraded to ‘requires improvement’ after an inspection in December 2019.

Last night, the operations director for Manor Care Home Group said they were “disappointed,” vowing to improve so that nothing was “missed” in the future.

A report into the CQC’s findings published before new year revealed 47 residents were living there at the time when inspectors had concerns about safety, effectiveness and leadership.

The report said: “Medicines were not always being managed safely. National guidance was not always followed to record how people’s creams, ointments and patch medicines were applied.

“Records for medicines prescribed to be given ‘when required’ did not provide staff with enough information as to when these should be given, or if they had been effective.”

Inspectors went on to identify problems with staffing at the home, with records indicating some employment history among staff had not been checked.

The report said inspectors found “mixed reviews” on the level of staff available, and comments from those in the home included “we could do with one or two more staff.”

The Northern Echo:

Describing the CQC’s latest rating as disappointing, Vanessa Cutler operation director at Manor Care Home Group told The Northern Echo: “We were very disappointed as we have always had a good report.

“Unfortunately we did not meet the grades required which was very disappointing and frustrating as everything is in place, but on the day important records were not completed correctly and to standards we normally work with.

“CQC inspections are very thorough and we have to make sure we adapt staff to work along side and understand what is required to exceed outstanding results.

“The home has had a problem with recruiting with DBS clearance taking extremely long period then before any staff can support they most go through in house induction training.

"We have now changed our DBS company which will speed up recruitment which is allowing senior staff to proceed in monitoring records so nothing is missed in the future.

“I am confident we will achieve the grade in due course.”

lThe full inspection report can be found online at www.cqc.org.uk/location/1-114061417