Two North East hospitals which provide care to adults with learning disabilities and autism have been told to make improvements by inspectors following a ‘significant deterioration in standards of care’.

A damning report found that staff at Lanchester Road Hospital in Durham 'didn’t always understand how to protect people from poor care and abuse', with three people injured during restraints.

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There were also 32 reports of incidents where injuries were sustained, with some requiring treatment, which inspectors said was “unacceptable”.

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An investigation at Bankfields Court in Middleesbrough also found managers “didn’t always recognise the restrictive practice being used” and staff “didn’t learn from incidents to reduce the levels of restrictions in place for some people.”

The rating for wards for people with learning disabilities or autistic people has dropped from good to inadequate.

Darlington MP Peter Gibson described the findings as "shockingly disappointing" and the services provided were "simply not good enough".

Jennifer Illingworth, care group director for children and young people and learning disabilities at the Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the ward, said the findings were ‘disappointing’.

But she said the trust was “committed to improving the experience for patients in our care and we are delivering an urgent action plan that is already showing we are making improvements.”

A inspection took place across both Durham and Middlesbrough sites over three weeks in May and June. This was in response to concerns from whistleblowers around staffing levels at Lanchester Road.

However, due to further issues found, this was extended to a full comprehensive inspection of the service.

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The rating for safety has dropped from requires improvement to inadequate. Caring and responsive has declined from good to requires improvement. The trust’s overall rating remains rated as requires improvement.

Inspectors found staff did not receive the right training to ensure they had the skills and knowledge to meet people’s needs, with training in learning disabilities, autism and alternative communication methods not mandatory for all staff.

They also found staff didn’t always provide kind and compassionate care or protect and respect people’s privacy and some people were staying in hospital for too long with no clear plans in place to support them to return home or move to a community setting.

Karen Knapton, CQC head of hospital inspection, said: “When we visited Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust, we found a significant deterioration in standards of care at Lanchester Road, as well as some concerns at Bankfields Court, since our last inspection in 2019.

“We found some people didn’t have the opportunity to lead inclusive and empowered lives due to overly restrictive practice on both sites, which must be addressed as a priority to keep people safe.

“At Bankfields Court, we were concerned that managers didn’t always recognise the restrictive practice being used. Also, it wasn’t always recorded, and staff didn’t learn from incidents to reduce the levels of restrictions in place for some people.

“It was concerning that Lanchester Road had insufficient, appropriately skilled staff to meet people’s needs, due to high levels of vacancies and staff sickness. This meant people didn’t receive consistent care from staff who knew them well and could care for their individual needs.

“Additionally, at this site staff didn’t always understand how to protect people from poor care and abuse. Three people had been injured during restraints, and 32 incidents of injury had been reported for healthcare assistants, some requiring treatment. This is unacceptable and measures must be put in place to keep patients and staff safe.

“We have told the trust what improvements must be made, and we will continue to monitor the service closely, returning to check on progress to ensure people using the service are receiving the care they should be able to expect.”

Ms Illingworth said: “Given the previous good ratings for this service, this is clearly disappointing. We are committed to improving the experience for patients in our care and we are delivering an urgent action plan that is already showing we are making improvements.

“We immediately commissioned an independent peer review into the service after the inspection in May and acted swiftly on its recommendations.

“Going forward, we will continue to work with our partners on the future provision of learning disability and autism services to ensure that together we offer the right packages of care that meets the needs of patients and their families.”

Darlington MP Peter Gibson said: "Over the past two and a half years I have engaged with TEWV extensively on a range of issues, often brought about by failings in their service.

"I had been led to believe that things were improving and they were turning things around but today’s shockingly disappointing findings lay bare that the change we need and the service that  the community TEWV serves is just simply not good enough.

"I will be seeking an urgent meeting with the Health Secretary to ask that action is immediately taken. The people of Darlington and the rest of the area served by TEWV simply deserves better."

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