‘Rodent dropping’ Harrogate care home no longer registered

The Harrogate care home where rodent droppings were found is no longer registered by the Care Quality Commission.

Government inspectors put Mary Fisher House in special measures this year after discovering rodent droppings in the kitchen and finding some medicine practices to be “unsafe”.

The CQC report detailing the findings, which also said bedrooms “smelt strongly of urine”, was published in April.

The health and social care regulator subsequently said it had “taken action to protect the safety and welfare of people living at the home” by moving them them to other homes.

But it added its legal processes did not allow it to go into further detail at the time because care provider Svivekcaregroup Limited could appeal its findings.

An updated version of the report, released this month after the appeal deadline passed, revealed the CQC had issued notice of a proposal to cancel the home’s registration.

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A CQC spokeswoman told the Stray Ferret enforcement action “did not proceed to the final stage”. When the Stray Ferret asked why not, the spokeswoman said:

“The service is now closed, and no longer active on the CQC’s register. No one is living on site, and as far as CQC is concerned the matter is concluded.”

In June, Svivekcaregroup indicated the home, which catered for up to 24 residents on Cold Bath Road, was likely to reopen.

The Stray Ferret has attempted to contact Svivekcaregroup to ask if it still planned to re-open Mary Fisher House or had other plans for the building but has not received a response.

Harrogate care home’s plea to get 100 cards for Olive’s 100th birthday

Do you have time to send a birthday card for soon to be 100-year-old Olive Pope? The Harrogate care home where she lives is calling on local people to send cards to this “one of a kind” woman.

Olive has lived at Southlands Bupa care home, on Ripon Road, since February and will turn 100 on Friday next week.

Staff hope to surprise her with 100 birthday cards from the local community to make it a day to remember.

Olive’s big day will also include afternoon tea from Bettys.

Asked for the secret of reaching this milestone, Olive said:

“Look after yourself. The occasional white wine is the start of looking after yourself, and simple soap and water goes a long way for the skin.”

Olive was born in Leeds and went to Roundhay High School but had to leave at 14 when her mum died so she could care for her dad and sister, Maggie.

After learning typewriting, Olive joined the civil service and cycled from Leeds to Harrogate each day. She later moved to Harrogate during the Second World War and lived with evacuees from London.

She recalls how they paid one guinea a week to stay there and they were fondly nicknamed “the guinea pigs”. She was very envious of her sister, Maggie, who was in the land army, as Olive had the less glamorous job of paying families’ soldiers allowances, also known as the death claim benefits.

Olive married Illtyd Les Pope in 1943 and has two daughters. She now enjoys gardening and seeing her four grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren.

One of her daughters, Mary, lives in Harrogate while another of her granddaughters, Thea, is set to move to the town which Olive is very excited about. Her other relatives live far away in New Zealand and Nova Scotia.

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Olive’s husband has now died, as her sister who was also a resident at Southlands.

Helene Ballinger, resident experience manager at Southlands Bupa care home said:

“Olive is a treasure. She is a truly lovely lady who is kind and polite, we love having her here at Southlands. We are very proud and excited to be celebrating her milestone birthday and hope to receive lots of birthday cards to surprise her with.”

Anyone wishing to send Olive a birthday card can post one to Southlands Bupa care home, 9 Ripon Rd, Harrogate HG1 2JA.

Harrogate care home residents furious at covid isolation guidance

Residents at a Harrogate care home have been left furious at new covid guidance which means they have to isolate for two weeks after stepping outside their front door.

The guidance published by government says residents should only leave care homes for medical appointments or in exceptional circumstances, such as visiting someone at the end of their life.

It adds that, if a resident does leave their home, then they should isolate for 14 days when they return.

But residents at Claro Road care home, which is run by Disability Action Yorkshire and cares for younger adults with physical disabilities, have said they will defy the guidance as it is a “clear breach” of their human rights.

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Jackie Snape, chief executive of the charity, has written to Harrogate MP, Andrew Jones, to warn him that he will receive furious e-mails as a result of the guidance.

She said:

“For the people that live at 34 Claro Road this is devastating. They are young people who just want to have the same freedoms as everyone else.

“They are seeing pictures of groups enjoying a beer outside the pub and they are being told they can’t even go for a walk around the block.

“They have all had both vaccinations, have individual risk assessments and know the importance of hands, face, space (and fresh air!).

“They, and we, feel this is a breach of their human rights. They have had an awful year. Not only have they been locked down, they have been locked down in an environment with people they have not chosen to live with and their main interactions each day is with staff wearing masks.

“As the rest of society is easing out of lockdown and enjoying fewer restrictions, our care home residents are having even more imposed on them.”

Mrs Snape added that Mr Jones has been invited to the care home to meet some of the residents.

Harrogate care home adopts door tech to save lives

A care home in Harrogate has adopted new technology in the fight to save lives from coronavirus this winter.

Vida Grange, which is a specialist dementia home in Pannal, has installed alcohol gel-secreting door pads to limit the spread of coronavirus among staff and residents.

The pads are designed to kill germs on doors, which can help to protect people from coronavirus. They could be particularly useful in care homes, where many residents struggle to remember the importance of hand hygiene.

Yorkshire company Surfaceskins, which created the pads last year, has seen a global spike in interest in the pads. But this is the first home in the Harrogate district to introduce them.

Adam Walker, Surfaceskins inventor, with James Rycroft, the managing director of Vida Healthcare, at Vida Grange in Pannal today. They are seen holding the pads.

At an event today at Vida Grange to mark the deal, James Rycroft, the managing director of Vida Healthcare, which owns Vida Grange, described the pads as a “welcome addition to our armoury”, He added:

“Sometimes people forget to use the alcohol gel but you can’t escape the Surfaceskins.

“The coronavirus pandemic took the world by surprise so we are trying to do all we can to protect our residents and staff.”

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Mr Rycroft said new technologies and strict procedures were helping to protect residents.

Some staff at the care home have tested positive for coronavirus in recent weeks but, so far, none have passed the virus on.

Adam Walker, one of the inventors of Surfaceskins and a Harrogate resident, said:

“This product does not clean your hands but it is designed to keep itself sterile. We still need people to use gel dispensers and wash their hands. However, if you do that and use a dirty door you could still infect yourself. The Surfaceskin helps clean hands stay clean. It is a vital missing link.”

Mr Walker added the product was not a knee-jerk reaction to coronavirus. He said he came up with the idea about 10 years ago.