Mixed report for south Longford care home

Thomond Lodge in Ballymahon was visited by Hiqa officials on February 16 this year and found that while 16 areas of inspection were either compliant or substantially compliant, three fell short of those standards.

Hiqa officials found that for the most part, residents in the 43 bedroom facility were “generally content” and relaxed in their surroundings.

“Residents were supported in an unhurried manner with staff seen to give residents time and space to make their views known,” the report higlighted.

It also noted how call bells were answered swiftly and communal rooms were supervised at all times.

The report, however, uncovered three topics of interest in which the care facility was found wanting in.

They included the areas of governance and management, individual assessment and care plans, health care and residents' rights.

In their 27 page report, Hiqa inspectors said they were not assured that there were management systems in place to ensure that the service provided was safe, appropriate, consistent and effectively monitored.

“The arrangements in place to meet the assessed needs of residents in relation to wound care and pain management were not robust. There was insufficient oversight of these areas by the nursing management team to minimise the risk of residents experiencing pain or developing wounds and to ensure positive outcomes for residents.”

On the issue of individual care plans, inspectors found that some assessments were not carried out within 48 hours of admission as required by health regulations.

“On the day of the inspection, there were limited records available to assure the inspectors that the residents were repositioned in accordance with their plan of care,” the report found.