Sugarman Health and Wellbeing in Clarendon Road, which caters for 34 people with complex clinical needs who live in their own homes, was judged to “require improvement” by the Care Quality Commission.
The CQC issued the service with a warning for “failing to meet the regulations related to the safe management of medicines”.
Like all providers, Sugarman Health and Wellbeing was rated in five categories and was rated “requires improvement” in two – safety and being well-led.
The other three areas – effective, caring and responsive – were judged to be “good”.
Inspectors wrote: “The provider had not ensured staff were competent to provide care and treatment safely and people’s medicines were not always managed well.
“The provider had not ensured people’s care was provided in accordance with their care plans. People’s care plans and risk assessments contained some inconsistencies and staff had not completed records well.”
In response to the report, a spokesperson for Sugarman Health and Wellbeing this week said that its team has been “working together with the CQC to provide additional evidence of how we’re keeping people safe”.
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The report goes on to say that the provider “had not always promoted staff wellbeing”, with some telling inspectors they “did not feel supported”.
However, the CQC also noted staff “treated people with kindness and understood their communication needs”, while supporting them to maintain their independence.
The report added: “Most people and their relatives felt people were well looked after and safe and appreciated care from the same staff members most of the time.”
However, inspectors reported “mixed feedback” about staff competence and training.
A Sugarman Health and Wellbeing spokesperson said: “We were pleased that families gave positive feedback about our service, and welcome the opportunity to continue to improve.
“Our team has been working together with the CQC to provide additional evidence of how we’re keeping people safe, and we are looking forward to welcoming the CQC team back to the service in the coming months.”
As well as the Watford centre, Sugarman Health and Wellbeing also operates services in Liverpool, Leeds and Dorset.
The Leeds centre has also been found to “require improvement”, while the other two locations are currently rated “good”.