A FAILING Halstead care home has once again been criticised by the Care Quality Commission.

Attwoods Manor Care Home, on Mount Hill, was placed into special measures and Essex County Council banned any more admissions after two poor inspections in September.

An unannounced inspection was undertaken by a pharmacy inspector on December 19 to look at the home’s use of medicines.

The inspector found the safety of medical procedures at the care home remained inadequate.

The report stated: “People were being given pain relief medicines with no information to guide staff on how to administer the medicine consistently and correctly.”

Staff had been given access to pain assessment tools, but there was no record to show that they were being used, and no guidance was given on doses, with one person being given an inhaler with no information on dosage or frequency.

The report stated that some people were looking after their own medicines and risk assessments had not been completed to assess whether they could manage this safely. The inspector saw one person managing their own inhalers, but they were not stored correctly, and found a new inhaler which had not been recorded on the medicine chart.

Staff were unaware the person had been prescribed a new inhaler and had no record of it, and the inspector judged the person was not being supported to use their inhalers as prescribed.

The report said there was no registered manager at the service, but an interim manager has been appointed. The home can look after 65 elderly residents, but fewer than 40 live there at the moment.

Attwoods Manor was unavailable for comment.