A NORTH-EAST care home is only operating safely because of the “goodwill” of its staff, who are working gruelling hours cooking and scrubbing floors.
“Exhausted” employees at Buchanan House Care Home in Fraserburgh say they have no “work-life” balance because of the shifts they are putting in to make sure residents are cared for properly.
And they have told inspectors they have no time to talk to the people they are supposed to be looking after, leaving them feeling “undervalued” and “overstretched”.
The Care Inspectorate has also reported the home to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service after noticing fire doors were wedged open and that self-closing door devices were broken.
A team from the watchdog visited the service earlier this year, and said the only reason it was running safely was the “good will” of staff and the shifts they are working – “frequently in excess of 50 hours a week and for seven or eight consecutive days without a day off”.
Employees told them financial concerns at the home were making them feel uncertain about their futures.
And they revealed they had been forced to pay for the shopping with petty cash – meaning residents did not receive their personal allowances on time.
The Inspectorate also slammed the “worn and shabby” surroundings at the home after one relative said they had to decorate a resident’s room themselves because they felt it was “inadequate”.
The damning report is the latest in a string of issues to hit north-east care homes in recent weeks.
Bosses at Four Seasons Health confirmed earlier this week that they were shutting the 54-bed Turriff Care Home.
The demise followed a similar closure at Glenesk, run by rival firm Renaissance, leaving no independent homes in the area.
Last month, Aberdeenshire Council-controlled Durnhythe Care Home at Portsoy was also branded weak by inspectors for the second time in four months.
Last night, a representative of Buchanan House refused to answer any questions about the latest inspection and hung up the phone.
The Inspectorate has demanded a “realistic” plan from the owners to address the serious issues raised, and to provide evidence that the business is still financially viable.
It graded the home “weak” for the quality of the environment, management and leadership, and said: “We were concerned that staff morale was poor and that the continued safe operation of the service was relying too heavily on the good will of the manager and staff.”
The watchdog made a surprise visit to the home – once an old manse for the adjoining Episcopal Church – on March 19.
The results of its inspection have only just been revealed.
The team found no administrator or maintenance person, and discovered cooking duties were covered by carers.
Staff also told them a carpet cleaner and a washing machine had been broken for two months, meaning they had to manually clean floors after “accidents”.
“Staff told us that the rota was organised remotely with little local consultation and at times staff felt exhausted and did not have a proper work-life balance,” the inspectors said.
The Inspectorate said staff worked hard and were committed to providing good care to the residents and “keeping them safe”.
But it said the relationship between them and the owners was “strained”.
“We were concerned that the provider’s response to this was unlikely to be effective in bringing about any positive improvement,” the report added.