Residents in 'painful' wait for the toilet at Staffordshire care home, says report

Care Quality Commission inspectors found serious failings in safety and effectiveness during an unannounced visit to Autumn House Nursing Home, Stone, in July.

The watchdog rated the facility, which caters for up to 67 people, 'Inadequate' after concluding 'no improvements' had been made since it was inspected in March and received the same rating.

On safety, a report from the latest inspection said: "We saw there had been numerous complaints made to the provider about the amount of time people had to wait to use the toilet, or for their breakfast.

"One person complained on two occasions of having to wait for up to an hour-and-a-half to use the toilet and this had caused them pain."

Read the full CQC report here

The report continued: "The service was not safe. People who used the service were not always taken seriously when they made allegations of abuse.

"There were insufficient suitably trained staff to meet the needs of people in a safe and timely manner. Risks to people were not always minimised as staff did not always follow people's risk assessments."

Effectiveness was also rated 'Inadequate' after the watchdog found one resident had been stopped from handling their own money.

The report said: "Staff were concerned that the person did not have the capacity to keep it safe and it may be at risk of being mislaid.

"We found a mental capacity assessment had been completed and it stated that this person had capacity to manage their own finances. However, the person had still not been supported to manage their money and they were experiencing periods of anxiety about it."

Leadership received an 'Inadequate' rating, but the CQC said a new manager had been appointed a week prior to the visit. Two other key areas, 'Caring' and 'Responsiveness' were deemed to 'Require Improvement'.

The home declined to comment.