Quality of information given to care homes after residents leave hospital to be investigated

The quality of information provided to care home providers when residents are discharged from hospital is to be investigated.

Care home managers raised concerns at the “deterioration in health” and the poor information provided regarding residents’ health needs and medication on leaving hospital at a meeting of Middlesbrough Council’s social care and adult services scrutiny panel.

Now councillors have recommended that the issue is fully investigated.

The authority’s health scrutiny panel with support from the Teeswide Safeguarding Adults Board will look into this.

The social care and adult services scrutiny panel made a series of recommendations at a meeting held this week to ensure the safeguarding of adults in residential care in Middlesbrough.

They have recommended a high-profile publicity campaign to raise awareness of abuse and neglect “helping people understand the different types of abuse, how to stay safe and what to do to raise a concern about the safety, wellbeing or welfare of an adult”.

All care home residents will receive relevant information about recognising abuse, their rights and how to express their concerns.

“Improving awareness will enable adults at risk to protect themselves from abuse and ensure their safety” the panel - chaired by Cllr Mick Thompson - said.

As reported, five vulnerable adults a day were “alerted” to the authorities as being at risk of abuse or neglect in Middlesbrough care homes.

In 2013/14 there were 1,100 alerts from care homes, of which 312 were referred into full safeguarding procedures. Referrals can vary from serious medication errors, concerns that carers have abused or neglected a resident, or concerns that family members are financially abusing a resident.

Rachel Mawer, contracts and commissioning implementation manager at Middlesbrough Council, told the previous meeting that the majority were “A on B” situations - where one resident has hurt another adding: “We see alerts as a good thing, we would be more concerned by a home which didn’t make any”.

At the previous meeting care home staff said residents had been discharged from hospital with “bedsores” and in “deteriorating health” and they don’t always receive a full discharge sheet.

Joint training with the care home sector, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to provide emergency contact details (already implemented), the council working with Teeswide Safeguarding Adults Board to look at new ways for a person-centred approach to safeguarding and for the council to produce a good safeguarding practice guide for care homes are the other recommendations made by the panel.

Cllr Mick Thompson said of carers: “It’s not the best paid job in the world but it’s one of the most important ones.”