Inspectors scold Northampton care agency for gaps in knowledge on how to keep patients safe

The care agency failed to impress inspectors that it knew how to keep patients safe.
The Lighthouse Care Agency failed to impress inspectors.The Lighthouse Care Agency failed to impress inspectors.
The Lighthouse Care Agency failed to impress inspectors.

A Northampton agency that cares for people in their homes has been scolded by the healthcare watchdog for it's weak understanding of what to do if someone in their care choked.

Lighthouse Care Agency looks after people in their homes by helping them with eating and cleaning - but the CQC says they are unconvinced staff would know what to do if a patient began choking.

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In a new report published this week, the watchdog criticised the agency for gaps in its risk assessments over hazards like choking, falls and seizures.

As a result, they have rated the service as "inadequate" and dropped it into special measures.

The report reads: "The lack of detailed risk assessments and care plans to mitigate risks put people at risk of not receiving safe care.

"At this inspection we reviewed the care plans and risk assessments of a person who was at risk of choking... There was no guidance available to tell staff what they should do if the person choked.

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"Medicines were not safely managed... eople were not protected from the risk of being supported by unsuitable staff."

However, inspectors repeatedly wrote that they had found no evidence of harm, and quoted one family member who said the agency's staff "had never ever let [person's name] down."

But the watchdog rated the service as "inadequate" and imposed special measures, meaning it has six months to improve to face closure.

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