Care centre standards
Advice
Legally all care homes in England are responsible for making sure that the care they provide meets national standards of quality and safety. They are monitored and inspected by members of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) who inspect the home to make sure it is performing to the required standard. They can inspect a home at any time, especially if a concern is reported to them by a relative, these inspections usually occur without any warning to the home itself.
The inspectors will mainly focus on:
- Checking of the resident is involved in discussions about their care, treatment and support;
- Ensuring that all Health and Safety measures are in place and being obeyed;
- Check that medication storage and administration protocols are followed;
- Ensure that the resident gets support regarding making decisions;
- Ensure that the resident is communicated with before administering any care, treatment or support;
- Ensure that the resident has their privacy and dignity respected; and
- Ensure that the resident is given opportunities, encouragement and support to help them live as independently as possible.
The home has a duty to: -
- Assess all of their resident's personal needs, especially about diet and medication;
- Coordinate with the NHS or their GP regarding care needs (especially if being transferred to/from another care situation such as a hospice/hospital and so on)
- As a very general example, they would respect such things as their: -
- Cultural background;
- Sex (including checking if the resident wants personal care to be provided by someone of the same gender);
- Mobility (not asking a resident to walk too far, ensuring they have any required walking aids etc); and
- Sexuality (respecting all sexual choices).
- Protect the resident from the risk of abuse, keep their environment safe and clean, and make sure staff are trained in any of their needs, including moving and handling via hoists etc.
Most homes will be happy to arrange things such as a resident’s daily paper, magazine subscriptions, visits from podiatrists and hairdressers etc.
There is a national standard for homes, for more information please see: -
If you feel that a loved one is not receiving the care, they deserve then bring the matter to the home manager, if there is no remedy then we suggest you contact the CQC and report the matter. It is only if the situation is classed as illegal, i.e., they are being deliberately abused in some way that the matter becomes a legal issue. If you suspect this then you should inform the police at the earliest opportunity.
How we can help
Lestons can intervene and ensure that your loved one is being treated fairly, we would send an inspector to the home unannounced who would have written authority to effectively do a spot-check on the resident. They would also need to see their medical records and check the staff have passed suitable training, this can cause an issue as their information is covered under GDPR rules, as such we would invite you to attend the home with us and assist us in gaining the resident's consent. Please note that if they have capacity under the Mental Health Act, they could refuse to talk to us, or allow us to check them over physically.
Our inspectors are from the care home or medical industry and are based mainly in Lincolnshire, however we are seeking to expand our network across the UK, we accept only the best recruits in this field. Because of this you need to be aware that there will be disbursements (travel and sustenance costs) added onto the total time taken for the visit. Your caseworker will be able to update you on this and give an estimate for such visits. We would NOT inform the care home of this surprise visit for obvious reasons
To gain our assistance you need to open a case, this is done by taking advantage of our free consultation service, activated by the link at the top of the page, should you wish to start a case the caseworker will send you the suitable payment link.
Please note your caseworker can only give generic advice, their role is to prepare your details for handling by our appointed legal team and to act as your point of contact, they will also issue you with your Password and PIN, these will be needed to log onto your client dashboard. From your dashboard you will be able to manage and view every aspect of your case, upload documents, images, files etc.