A report into an “unsafe” care home has revealed how staff secretly gave medicine to residents hidden in their food without any expert guidance.

The practice, known as covert administration and allowed in certain circumstances, is used for some residents at The Avenues Care Centre in Cliftonville, which supports 42 elderly people, some with dementia and mental health conditions, and is run by Premiere Care (Southern) Limited.

But a team from the Care Quality Commission, while visiting the service on a recent inspection, found staff had received no guidance from the community pharmacist as to how to do so safely. The inspectors cited this as one of their concerns as they rated the home “inadequate” in the safety category.

During their visit, they also found that records of high-risk medicines were not correct and some staff administering medicine had not completed training, leading to them subsequently being removed from that duty by Premiere Care (Southern) Limited.

Another issue flagged up by the CQC team was the lack of staff on duty, meaning residents often had to wait for support.

Inspectors said in their report that during their visit call bells rang for long periods of time.

“Some people became distressed when they had to wait for their care,” they said.

'People were not safe and were at risk of avoidable harm' - CQC

“Staff told us they were often very busy and did not have time to spend with people.

“One staff member told us: ‘We can only provide basic care.

“We can’t spend time with people and offer them company and emotional support when they cannot see their relatives.’”

Following the inspection, however, the provider has started employing agency staff to ensure all shifts are covered.

Inconsistent leadership and poor risk assessing were also highlighted in the report, and inspectors said care had not always been planned to keep people as safe as possible.

The home in First Avenue, which was rated “requires improvement” in 2019, was given the same rating again overall.

In the safety category of the report, however, the rating was 'inadequate'.

“This meant people were not safe and were at risk of avoidable harm," the CQC said.

In the report, however, they acknowledged work was being done to improve the service as well as positive aspects they found during their visit.

“There had been inconsistent leadership at the service and the provider had taken action to address this and leadership had improved,” the report says.

'The provider had a clear vision for the service which included supporting people to be independent and treating them with dignity and respect' - CQC

“Staff were motivated and felt supported, they were clear about their roles and had been held to account when things went wrong.

“People and their relatives had not formally been asked for their feedback of the service, however, everyone we spoke with was confident to raise any concerns they had and these had been acted on.

“The provider had a clear vision for the service which included supporting people to be independent and treating them with dignity and respect.”

Inspectors said staff felt appreciated by the provider and acting manager and were thanked regularly for their hard work, also receiving financial rewards.

“During the pandemic, when food stocks were short, the provider had ordered food for staff to ensure they always had enough to feed their families and were not putting themselves at risk at the shops.

“The provider had also introduced staff welfare checks.”

The CQC said lessons had been learned when things went wrong and action taken to prevent them happening again.

“Following our inspection, the provider sent us evidence to demonstrate they had acted on the concerns we identified during the inspection,” they added.

Premiere Care (Southern) Limited, which runs the home, was approached for comment.

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