Wednesday November 30th 2022
Newbyres Village Care Home, Gorebridge.
A council care home which has been inspected six times in the last two years failed to improve its grades on its latest visit.
Newbyres Village Care Home, Gorebridge, received an ‘adequate’ grade for three of its five inspected areas during a two-day long inspection in September.
A grade three means the inspectors found there were some strengths, but these just outweighed weaknesses.
Inspectors raised concerns about the way some staff moved patients saying they did not use “safe moving and handling techniques” and said there was an “absence of leadership”.
It was also felt there needed to be more team meetings and support given to staff at the home, which can care for up to 61 residents at any time.
An official told cabinet members: “There were some issues around medication management including some medication errors and a suggestion more training was required around that.”
However he also highlighted positives from the inspection report with staff praised for embracing the Open With Care guidance introduced by Scottish Government in the wake of the pandemic.
The inspectors said: “As restrictions have eased, people’s rights and quality of life were enhanced because staff actively promoted visiting.
“The Friday afternoon cream tea was a very popular event which was attended well by relatives and played a regular feature of the activity programme for people to be supported to maintain contact with friends and family.”
Councillor Colin Cassidy told the meeting he had a relative in Newbyres.
He said: “I have been in a few times myself and I judge with my own eye and you have happy clients in there, you have happy families, the staff are happy and it is a good environment as far as I am concerned.”
The inspectors graded the leadership, staff team and level of care for people’s well-being at adequate.
They graded the setting of the home and support for care planning as good.
Councillor Stewart McKenzie asked officers if they could guarantee grades would improve over the next year and was told the council was ‘aspiring to’ that goal.
However the cabinet was told: “We would have to caveat that with the issue around care homes and care at home with staffing and we do rely on bank and agency workers which while it isn’t indicative of lower grades does create a challenge of continuity of care.
“I don’t think we are sitting her saying adequate is where we want to be it is clearly not. We want to be good, very good and beyond that.”
The report which will be sent to performance and review committee for further scrutiny can be read here.
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