Care inspectors find staff at Castlehill Care Home in Inverness treat residents with 'compassion and dignity' during unannounced visit
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Inspectors have judged an Inverness care home to be providing adequate care and support during the coronavirus pandemic.
But they have recommended it increase the number of domestic staff, stating housekeeping staff were working under "considerable pressure" at the time of the visit.
It follows an unannounced visit by the Care Inspectorate to Castlehill Care Home in Caulfield Road North, Cradlehall.
At the time of last month’s inspection, 63 people lived there.
Inspectors highlighted important strengths in the way the home supported and safeguarded people’s health and wellbeing during the pandemic.
"People’s experience was of a good standard," their report stated.
"Throughout our inspection, we saw positive interactions between people and staff.
"Staff knew people who lived in the care home well and treated them with compassion and dignity.
"People told us that the staff were caring, and they regularly came into their bedrooms to ask if there was anything they needed.
"We heard and saw patient, meaningful interactions and conversations."
They noted the service had started to re-connect people with their community again, following the Scottish Government guidance to open to visitors safely.
But people were socially distancing in their rooms due to a Covid-19 outbreak.
The report said there was good communication between the service and families about information on the impact of this.
In infection control practices, the service was performing at an adequate level, with communal areas being clean and fresh while frequently touched surfaces were cleaned regularly.
"However, housekeeping staff were working under considerable pressure," the report continued.
"To sustain a high standard of cleanliness and reduce the risk of the spread of infection, we recommend increasing the number of domestic staff."
With the exception of housekeeping staff, they found that staffing levels allowed for the delivery of well-paced care.
"People experienced good continuity of care because they knew the staff well and benefited from a team that worked well together," the report stated.
"Staff sensitively supported people who were living with dementia to keep safe and social distance."
Inspectors noted the service had recently been affected by staff shortages due to Covid-19-related staff absence but had responded to feedback from NHS Highland and deployed additional staff.
Recruitment was ongoing to fill vacancies across all departments.
Staff felt well supported by management and able to ask for additional support if required. All staff were participating daily in Covid-19 testing.
Areas highlighted for improvement included ensuring that all times, during the day and at night or during an unplanned event, that there were sufficient care staff.
Linda Meston, managing director for Castlehill Care Home, said: "We are delighted the hard work and interaction between the residents and relatives and staff was noted and the care and support along with the dignity and respect given."
She said people’s wishes and needs were central to everything at the home and the feedback from the inspectors was that the standard of hygiene was very high.
Ms Meston said at the time of the inspection a number of people did not wish to continue in a housekeeping role because of the pandemic and had left.
A recruitment process had started with a new housekeeper starting the week after the inspection.
