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CCFTV has been calling for the widespread adoption of independent safety monitoring in the care home sector for many years. Ref https://www.carehomeprofessional.com/guest-column-make-cctv-standard-in-care-homes-in-2023/

We have regularly called out poor care services and sought to highlight failing providers.

We have consistently reminded that care services were on average getting worse as a number of headwinds negatively impacted on the sector.

Covid pressures, material staff shortfalls, declining pools of people to recruit, exhausted staff, family and visitor exclusions as as a result of the pandemic, reducing regulator visits and a reactive approach only to inspection, are just some of the issues that have created what is now essentially a crisis in care.

CCFTV work highlights the current national situation of a lack of safety for dementia patients in the care sector that could have been avoided years ago had safety monitoring been mandated as we have been proposing.

Instead, what we have is a regulator and adult safeguarding teams dependent upon whistleblowers and family complaints, before they progress a reactive inspection/review of any care home at that moment in time.

This is simply not good enough.

On many such occasions over the last year, the regulator has re-rated a home, usually downwards to a required improvement or an inadequate grading. That visit typically followed a serious concern being raised, so basically after a resident had suffered some form of an incident which then warranted a CQC review of the inspection rating or closer investigation by the adult safeguarding members. Some homes that have had repeated inspections with unsatisfactory ratings each time have continued to trade regardless of those outcomes.

CCFTV will continue to not only call out failing providers but will also point to repeated regulator failings. It is nonsense that their approach is reactive only and that they do not insist that care providers use independent safety monitoring. The use of such would not only provide everyday audit and review to create a proactive approach to care delivery and safety, but also act as a deterrent for those who abuse older people.

CCFTV is aware that #cqc is currently re-organising it operations, however without the introduction of safety monitoring, that re-organisation has all the hallmarks of re-arranging ‘deckchairs on the Titanic’.

It will take a very radical change within Government and at the regulator to not only halt the decline in care services but also to restore safety and confidence in the care home sector.

That could start by requiring providers to introduce independent safety monitoring at failing care homes or have them face the alternative of cancellation of their registration.

The “we don’t know how it happened “ mantra must now stop.