Residents with ‘unexplained bruises’ found at ‘inadequate’ care home

Residents had “unexplained bruises” and one person had to wait more than 30 minutes to go to the toilet at a care home rated ‘inadequate’ by the CQC.

Beechcroft care home in Merseyside, which is operated by Flightcare Ltd, was placed in special measures by the CQC following an inspection in March.

The inspection report found that one person in the home, which provides care for up to 43 people, had made an allegation of potential abuse that had not been appropriately acted upon by the manager or referred to the local safeguarding team and CQC for further investigation.

Some people had unexplained bruises that had not been reported to the local authority safeguarding team.

The CQC found that some people had sustained similar injuries over a significant period of time “yet no consideration had been given to whether this indicated a pattern of potential abuse”.

Inspectors also observed people on several occasions asking for support and not receiving it within an acceptable time.

One person was observed waiting over 30 minutes to go to the toilet.

A Flightcare Ltd spokesperson told the BBC the home was working to “address all the shortcomings” found by the CQC, including putting new management in place.