A care at home service based in Hamilton must make urgent improvements in the care experienced by people who rely on it, inspectors have said.

The Care Inspectorate has served a formal Improvement Notice on Hamilton Home Care following an inspection which raised serious concerns. 

The notice lists four areas which require urgent improvement. 

These include ensuring that those who are responsible for managing and leading the service have the skills, knowledge and experience necessary to do so. 

Management should also introduce additional leadership and management resources until managers responsible for undertaking management roles are fit to do so. 

Management must also ensure that all staff are able to identify when a person who uses the service may be at risk from actual or potential harm or abuse. They should ensure that all staff are aware of when and how to report and escalate concerns including to appropriate authorities; and they must ensure that appropriate action is taken in response to the concerns raised to keep people safe. 

Staff must also be fully aware of and compliant with Adult Support and Protection policy and procedures. 

The Improvement Notice also says management must carry out a comprehensive care review that includes a full assessment of service user care needs and devise a detailed support plan and make relevant risk assessments.  

And, in order to protect the health, welfare and safety of those who use the service by ensuring that reviews, risk assessments and support plans accurately reflect the current health and care needs of the service user. 

A spokesperson for the Care Inspectorate said: “The Improvement Notice we have issued clearly lays out the improvements we must see so that the care experienced by people who rely on this service improves quickly. 

“We will visit this service again soon to check on progress and if we are not satisfied that the matters raised are being addressed urgently we will not hesitate to take further action. 

“Everyone in Scotland has the right to safe, compassionate care which meets their needs and respects their rights. 

“Anyone with a concern can contact our helpline on 0345 600 9527.”

The improvement notice is available here: http://bit.ly/HamiltonHomeCare