THE WILTSHIRE Heights Care Home has been placed under special measures and deemed ‘inadequate’ after an inspection by The Care Quality Commission, who published their report yesterday.

The CQC report outlined how the Porthaven care home in Cottle Avenue, Bradford on Avon, was ‘poor’ in regards to record keeping, communication and staff practice towards residents ‘was not safe’.

In their five point checklist, the surprise inspection, which took place on August 7 and 10, found that the home was ‘inadequate’ for the service’s safety, effectiveness, regarding the competency of staff, its responsiveness and the service being well-led.

The only category that did not get an ‘inadequate’ rating related to the service being caring – for which it registered a ‘requires improvement’ due to care records not always being securely locked away.

Examples detailed in the report said staff were inadequately trained in taking patients’ blood or handling a syringe and in one instance a duty nurse told the inspector that a patient had run out of medicine as the staff member who usually dealt with this was on holiday.

Matt Berry, Home Manager of Wiltshire Heights, said: “We are baffled by the CQC rating which is entirely inconsistent with the positive views of the care given at the home by our residents, families and all other local care agencies.”

“Any healthcare professional who has visited the home, or reads the report, will realise the rating is incorrect.

“The staff work extremely hard to provide the best standards of care to our residents, and they treat everyone with dignity and respect.

“The care, safety and well-being of our residents are always our primary concern, and we have asked CQC to review its rating at the earliest opportunity.”

The home - that includes 63 adults, some of whom suffer from dementia - will be inspected again within six months.

If insufficient improvements have been made, the CQC’s enforcing procedures could prevent the provider from operating the service or cancel their registration.