Two providers have been criticised by the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission (ACQSC) over breaches in chemical restraints and infection control.
21 residents were found to be receiving psychotropic medication as a form of chemical restraint at Blue Care’s Toowoomba home following a two-day assessment in August.
“The Approved provider had not identified these consumers were receiving chemical restraint and therefore had not sought consent or medical authorisation for the use of the restraint, and care planning directives do not provide guidance for staff in relation to the appropriate use of the restraint,” the report states.
The report adds that Blue Care had not rejected the findings with consent for all residents prescribed chemical restraint to be obtained, and care planning directives to be updated.
An assessment of Tricare’s Toowoomba home in August also found the provider had not implemented an effective infection control program or COVID Outbreak Management.
Among the issues found by assessors, visitors were performing their own temperature checks with no cleaning of equipment between use and the visitors’ register was missing information including if visitors had a current flu vaccination.
TriCare has responded to the findings, saying that cleaning staff had removed instructions for the use of the digital thermometer and had not notified management it required replacing.
“Visitors and representatives have been notified via email of their responsibilities relating to entry to the service,” they said.
“The tracking mechanism for influenza vaccines for visitors has been updated to reflect accurate information.”
But with the assessors finding that the Outbreak management plan was ineffective at the time of the assessment, the facility has still been found to be non-compliant.
