Inspectors have expressed continued concerns about the level of care provided at a home for the elderly in Inverness which had recently faced closure.
Elmgrove House Care Home, in the city’s Ballifeary Road, was served an improvement notice by the Care Inspectorate last September.
It followed a damning report by the inspectorate which found serious failings in their delivery and recommended a series of improvements.
Inspectors, who had highlighted five separate areas of concern, have since made two revisits and have confirmed the level of care had improved to “adequate”, though they continued to raise concerns.
The latest report published yesterday said: “We found there were some strengths but these just outweigh weaknesses.
“Strengths may still have a positive impact but the likelihood of achieving positive experiences and outcomes for people is reduced significantly because key areas of performance need to improve.”
It added: “Although the service had a system for recording accidents and incidents, we found this was not being followed consistently. Some incidents were not reported and some information was incomplete. This led to the overview of falls being poor.
“Some times people did not receive their medication as instructed by their GP.This meant there may have been times when people’s pain or other symptoms were not controlled as well as they could have been.”
The Care Inspectorate said: “The provider should improve the overall management of falls and incidents through better recording, analysis, appropriate follow up action and review.
“The provider should ensure that people are offered opportunities to take part in regular activities that are meanginful to them regardless of their abilities and needs.”
Despite the concerns, the inspectors said the level of care was adequate and progress had been made since last year’s visit, which had initially led to NHS Highland halting admissions.
Elmgrove Care Home, operated by Marchmont Homes Ltd, was contacted for comment but did not respond.
