CQC Takes Action to Protect People Supported by Maidstone Home Care Service

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has downgraded Kent PBS Service from good to inadequate and placed the service in special measures to protect people, following an inspection which ended in July. Kent PBS Service, run by Home Group Limited, is a home care agency in Maidstone which provides care and support to people living in supported living settings. While the service supported other people, CQC only assessed the care and support provided to the four people who received the regulated activity of personal care. CQC carried out this inspection in response to concerns received about people’s safety. At this inspection, CQC identified six breaches of regulation relating to safe care and treatment, safeguarding people from abuse and improper treatment, person-centred care, treating people with dignity and respect, safe staffing and overall management of the service. CQC has downgraded safe, caring and well-led from good to inadequate. Responsive and effective were not assessed during this inspection and remain rated as good. CQC has placed Kent PBS Service into special measures which involves close monitoring to ensure people are safe while they make improvements. Special measures also provides a structured timeframe so services understand when they need to make improvements by, and what action CQC will take if this doesn’t happen. CQC has also begun the process of taking further regulatory action to address the concerns, which Home Group Limited has the right to appeal. Catriona Eglinton, CQC deputy director of adult social care in Kent, said: “When we inspected Kent PBS Service, we found people weren’t receiving the care they deserved. Inadequate leadership had resulted in widespread issues across the service, which was ultimately failing the people it was supposed to support and care for. “We found people living in unsafe and undignified circumstances, which placed them at risk of harm or deteriorating health. This was clear in the way the service managed medicines. Inspectors saw there had been a significant number of medication errors over a period of ten months and people still weren’t consistently receiving medication in line with their assessed health needs. “In one example, someone needed rescue medication administered during seizures, but leaders hadn’t assessed the competency of staff to give this medication safely. Many staff hadn’t completed training since 2023, putting people at risk of a prolonged seizure. “We also found when people became distressed or agitated, staff didn’t always know when to administer prescribed medicines promptly to help reduce their distress. This resulted in avoidable escalation of behaviours and we saw incidents where people and staff had come to harm as a result. “Although we received some positive feedback about individual members of staff, we also heard concerns from families and other professionals about a decline in people’s welfare since moving to the service. Multiple relatives told us their loved one’s personal hygiene had deteriorated and while they had previously taken part in activities, they now spent long periods in bed with little engagement. “We have told leaders exactly where they must make immediate and significant improvements, and we are monitoring the service closely to keep people safe while those changes take place.”

Source: Original reporting via Care Quality Commission