Care home where residents kept ‘up all night’ rated Inadequate

By Joe Coughlin, Local Democracy Reporter

A care home has been given the worst possible inspection rating after people were kept “up all night” by a resident “singing and clapping”. 

Rowena House care home in Oakwood Avenue, Beckenham, has been labelled ‘Inadequate’ by the Care Quality Commission in a report published last week.

In the document, the inspector said two residents were awake when they arrived at the care home at 5am, and that staff were not suitably competent or experienced to meet the needs of residents at night.

One resident told the inspector: “I was kept up all night by a resident singing and clapping. I never saw any staff. I went to bed at 10pm and no one checked on me. Normally staff come to see if I am ok, but I didn’t see anyone last night.”

The inspector also said staff were not always aware of the risks posed to residents. The manager of the care home told the inspector they felt “overwhelmed” and did not have time to complete care plans for people using the service.

The report said: “During our night-time visit we observed a person walking along the corridors on their own and using the stairs… The [file for the resident] referred to the person being at high risk of falls, and that they required supervised mobility. A staff member told us they were not aware that the person was at risk of falls.”

Medicines for patients were also not always safely managed, which the report said placed people at risk of harm. The inspector said it was unclear whether patients were receiving the correct dose, as the stock of their medicines was not always recorded.

However, staff at the service told the inspector they felt “listened to” and voiced their opinions at meetings. One staff member said: “The registered manager’s door is always open, I get on well with him. He is a good manager and things here have been much better since he came along.”

The report also said the home had received a certificate of excellence from the local authority for all residents and staff being vaccinated against Covid-19. Staff were also said to have been wearing PPE and following social distancing rules during the inspection.

The service provides personal care for up to 22 people aged 65 and over. Up to 15 residents were living at the home during the inspection.

Rowena House was approached for comment but had not responded at the time of publishing.

Pictured top: Rowena House care home in Beckenham (Picture: Google Earth)