Advice issued to care home after inspection
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The friendly atmosphere at an Inverness care home has been praised by the Care Inspectorate in the wake of its most recent inspection.
Highview House, in Scorguie Avenue, was the subject of an unannounced visit on July 27, and the results have now been released.
As well as the positive atmosphere, the attitude of the staff and the quality of management and leadership was also highlighted by the inspectorate.
The report pointed out that certain members of staff "stood out" by how well they knew the residents in their care and that staff supported people "in a warm and positive way."
It was also noted that meal and snack times were "an enjoyable social experience" and that people were comfortable and content in their chairs which supported their individual care needs.
There were also positive relationships between residents, with "lots of chat, banter and laughter."
The quality of the care provided by the home was graded at three out of six (adequate) while the management and leadership was graded at four (good).
The quality of the environment and quality of staffing at Highview, which is operated by Barchester Healthcare, were not assessed.
Some concerns have been raised over the quality of care on offer.
Among the findings, the Care Inspectorate highlighted that some residents with skin complaints were not having their conditions properly managed.
The organisation pointed out that in some cases, dressings were poorly organised or unaccounted for, and also highlighted a need for more comprehensive monitoring systems to be put in place.
It was also discovered that despite checks and safeguards to ensure that all medication was accounted for, some individuals’ medicine was out of stock, resulting in delays in it being administered.
The recording of residents’ food and drink intake could also have been improved, according to the organisation.
One recommendation which was carried over from the previous inspection in July 2017 was that some residents’ care plan reviews were not being carried out at least every six months.
Some flaws found in the inspection were put down to a high number of recent changes in personnel at the home.
The care home was advised that accurate review records should be kept, linking to an agreed plan of care and including information on what is working well and what needs to be improved.
A spokeswoman for London-based Barchester Healthcare said the firm would continue to strive to improve and revealed that plans were already being developed in order to improve the experience for residents.
She insisted that the firm was committed to ensuring that residents received the best possible care.
"The team at Highview House has a consistent focus on providing the best possible care to our residents," she said.
"While we note the improvements required by the latest Care Inspectorate report, we appreciate the recognition of the leadership and management, as well as our confident and empathetic care team.
"We are developing an action plan to address the elements of our care that require improvement.
"Our home has made positive changes over recent years and we will continue with this approach in the future.
"Our aim is to always deliver the best possible care to all of our residents."
