Elderly man's food and drink not properly monitored in nursing home

What happened

Mr S was admitted to a nursing home to allow him to recover from an infection.

He was looked after for about a fortnight and was then admitted to hospital following a fall. He later died.

Mrs J later complained that her father's food and drink needs were not met, that his medication was missed on many occasions, and that he was not properly assessed to prevent falls. Mrs J said this led to her father's overall health deteriorating.

What we found

The home did not keep good enough records of what Mr S drank, and it looked like he had gone long periods without being given drinks.

The home tried to meet Mr S's food needs, but he was reluctant to eat and it did not properly monitor his weight. It did not do enough to stop Mr S from falling, and communication with the family was poor when he did fall.

There was no evidence to show Mr S's medication was missed.

Mr S's health had not deteriorated because of the care he was given as he was already deteriorating when he was admitted to the home. We thought this was due to his underlying condition rather than the action of the home.

Putting it right

The home wrote to Mrs J acknowledging the failings we found and apologising. The home also produced an action plan that outlined the actions it would take to prevent a recurrence and how these improvements would be audited. A copy of this action plan was sent to the Care Quality Commission.