A LOCAL care home says it has already started to implement recommendations made by Care Inspectorate Wales in a critical report published  in April. 

The director of Glaslyn Court care home in Gilwern, Mrs Ingrid Wright has said that the wellbeing of residents and staff is the home’s  the number one priority and welcomed the findings of the report.

One man, however, whose wife spent some time at the home, has said he felt let  down by the Glaslyn team and says the CIW reports is one of the worst he had ever read.

Brian Williams’s wife, who has Dementia, stayed at Glaslyn for a week’s respite care several  years ago. 

In preparation to her stay, Mr Williams  provided the home with a care package that he created so the staff would be well aware of who she  was with personal history, dietary requirements, music likes and medication regime.”

However, it became clear to Mr Williams that his wife’s wellbeing had not been a priority as she returned home with visible injuries.

“When my wife came home I made a formal complaint to the manager at the home about her treatment, which resulted in injuries to her feet and legs. 

“At the time I forwarded photographs of the injuries that my wife sustained as a result on the first night staying there, of finding an insecure door resulting in her found freezing cold in the grounds in the middle of the night with just a nightie on.

“When the manager eventually answered my email I was told that the injuries were as a result of poor flooring and ill fitting shoes -  the shoes my wife wore every day at home.”

Following this, Mr Williams informed Monmouthshire Social Services and forwarded a formal complaint to Care Inspectorate Wales (C.I.W.), detailing Mrs William’s injuries with a copy of the photographs.

In response, the couple were informed that this would be taken into consideration at the next Inspection.

After nearly two years, an Inspection took place in February of this year and was published in April. 

As a former detective for Gwent Police for thirty years and investigator on Operation Jasmine for five years - a major investigation into neglect and abuse in Care Homes - Mr Williams also privately successfully investigated two cases of neglect by Aneurin Bevan Health Board, making him “well aware” of the standards of proof required in these cases. 

However, upon reading the report on Glaslyn Court conducted by Care Standards Wales, Mr Williams labelled it as “the worst report I have seen in my years of investigation.”

Although the report suggested that residents seemed “comfortable” in their surroundings, and staff were described as “kind and attentive”, there were various areas that were insufficent and needed immediate improvement.

The report reflected the lack of attention paid to personal plans - as experienced by Mrs Williams. 

The report states: “Personal plans identify people’s support requirements in detail, however gaps in daily recordings show a lack of oversight of care delivery. Personal plans are not consistently followed by staff, this includes monitoring peoples skin integrity and ensuring safety equipment is in place as required.”

On top of this, the report highlighted that the level of safeguarding also needs improvement. “Mechanisms in place to safeguard people require improvement. The entrance to the building is not secure and visitor’s identity is not consistently checked. Medication systems require strengthening. Personal plans and risk assessments are in place, but these are not always revised and updated following matters of a safeguarding nature.”

Hygeine was also seen as a problem within the home, as the report states: “We saw soiled laundry in an unsecure red laundry sack left in a communal corridor. We found a yellow open disposable bag containing used continence aids hooked on the handles of a cupboard in a communal wet room.”

In light of this, Mr Williams said: “Despite all the time and preparation I took to explore the home prior to my wife going there I feel I was deceived and awful that I let my wife down by taking her there.”

Speaking to the Chronicle the director of the Care Home, Ingrid Wright responded to the comments and outlined how Glaslyn Care Homes hope to move forward.

 “The wellbeing of our residents and staff is always the number one priority at Glaslyn Care Homes, as such we welcome the Care Inspectorate Wales recent annual report and its recommendations. 

“We thoroughly reviewed the report and have already begun to implement the improvements suggested. These independent inspections are a vital aspect to ensure that we continue to deliver services of the highest standard.”

The report can be accessed here.