MSP says NHS Highland bosses should resign if Home Farm deadline slips

By Jamie McDonald

MSP says NHS Highland bosses should resign if Home Farm deadline slips

Local MSP Andrew Baxter has told Radio Skye he will call for senior NHS Highland resignations if the organisation fails to meet the Care Inspectorate deadline for improvements at Home Farm.

Mr Baxter made the comments following a public meeting held by SOS Skye on Monday night, where the future of the care home and wider health services on Skye were discussed.

The Care Inspectorate has given NHS Highland until 25 August to complete actions required under an Improvement Notice at Home Farm.

Speaking to Radio Skye, Mr Baxter said failure to meet that deadline would raise serious questions about leadership at NHS Highland.

“When the original report came out, I said that NHS Highland had to take this seriously and they had to work night and day in putting that improvement plan in place. They have the opportunity to do that now. The people of Skye expect it, and I certainly do as well and will hold them to account. Heads must role if they are unable to do that.

Home Farm concerns

The meeting, chaired by Fay Thomson, heard concerns from residents and community members about staffing, recruitment, maintenance and the long term future of Home Farm.

SOS Skye said it had been told that the permanent manager at Home Farm remains off sick, with interim manager Sheena Williamson currently overseeing improvement work.

Audience members raised concerns about reliance on agency staff, recruitment delays and the difficulties of attracting workers to Skye.

One employee at Home Farm who was in attendance said more needed to be done to encourage local people into care roles.

Baxter calls for long-term plan

Mr Baxter said the immediate focus should not just be on meeting the Care Inspectorate deadline, but on ensuring Home Farm has a sustainable future.

“We need to be making those decisions now. We’ve got to think out of the box. We’ve got to persuade NHS Highland not to just go the way they always go. I’m staggered that the local housing association had actually offered accomodation to NHS Highland and it was refused. If that is the case, that is an absoulute scandal and NHS managers need to hang their heads in shame if they refused that perfect opportunity for workers here on the ground. That is something I will be asking the Chief Executive, Fiona Davies about in the next few days.”

Councillor says residents’ care is not the issue

The meeting also heard from Councillor Drew Millar, who recently met Highland Health and Social Care Partnership Chief Officer Arlene Johnstone alongside Councillor John Finlayson who sent his apologies.

Mr Millar told the meeting he had received reassurance that the care being provided to residents was not the concern.

He said the main challenges related to leadership, recruitment and improvements to the building.

He also addressed concerns within the community that NHS Highland wanted to reduce services or close Home Farm, saying he had been reassured that was not the case.

Mr Millar also said he had been told by Ms Johnstone that had she been invited to the meeting, she would have attended.

Calls for NHS Highland to engage directly with community

SOS Skye chair Fay Thomson said the group would continue pushing for answers from NHS Highland.

She said the organisation plans to invite Arlene Johnstone to a future public meeting and will seek a written plan setting out the intended future of Home Farm over the next five to ten years.

Speaking to Radio Skye, she said:

“It’s not that anybody has ever thought that NHS Highland deliberately wanted to close Home Farm, but there are major worries about the management overall and the fact that things have detoriated to this stage. If a place is effectively managed, that should never happen. There was a lot of concern expressed tonight, quite rightly, about how things have led to this and also what measures have been put in place to see that the managent of Home Farm is sustainable.”

Urgent care

The meeting also heard about urgent care provision at Portree Hospital.

SOS Skye said it remained concerned about cover and called for greater clarity over NHS Highland’s plans.

Vice chair Neil Campbell said there was still disagreement over what “24/7 urgent care” on Skye actually means.

Andrew Baxter said it was one of the first issues he raised after becoming MSP.

NHS Highland response

NHS Highland said Sheena Williamson has been appointed as Interim Registered Care Home Manager at Home Farm and is “responsible for the day-to-day leadership of the service, including oversight of care, staffing, quality improvement activity and compliance with Care Inspectorate requirements.”

The health board said Ms Williamson “has extensive experience in supporting and improving care services and is leading the ongoing improvement programme at Home Farm.”

NHS Highland said senior leaders are providing regular oversight, with Louise Bussell, Nurse Director, Arlene Johnstone, Chief Officer, and Fiona Duncan, Chief Social Work Officer, meeting with the operational team twice weekly “to ensure regular oversight and quick escalation of any barriers that the team are experiencing in moving forward the improvement work.”

On progress against the Care Inspectorate Improvement Notice, NHS Highland said it had carried out “significant work to strengthen governance, record keeping and quality assurance arrangements in the care home.”

“The team has reviewed existing records, audits and action plans to ensure improvement activity is clearly documented, regularly reviewed and supported by appropriate evidence,” it said.

NHS Highland added: “Although there is still work to do, both NHS Highland and the Care Inspectorate have recognised that progress is being made, and we remain fully committed to ensuring that all required improvements are delivered and sustained.”

On staffing, NHS Highland said: “It remains challenging to recruit and retain permanent staff in Home Farm and across the Adult Social Care sector.”

It said that where local recruitment is not sufficient, it works “closely with agencies that provide highly trained staff from across the country” to ensure “safe, person-centred care.”

The health board said it remains committed to promoting recruitment opportunities locally and confirmed it has “recently secured advertising with Radio Skye to promote vacancies at Home Farm and An Acarsaid.”

On maintenance concerns, NHS Highland said: “Regular visits from our Estates team are continuing, with a number of improvement projects underway across the home, including the replacement of fire doors.”

It said this work “supports the requirements of the Improvement Notice” and that it is “focused on delivering all outstanding improvements as quickly as possible.”

Responding to concerns over the future of Home Farm, NHS Highland said: “We remain committed to providing care on Skye and working closely with The Highland Council to ensure local communities help shape how services are planned and delivered.”

It added: “We recognise the challenges we face, and our focus remains on delivering safe, effective care across Skye, Lochalsh and South West Ross.”

NHS Highland said it would not be responding to comments from MSP Andrew Baxter regarding calls for members of the senior leadership team to resign if the Care Inspectorate Improvement Notice deadline is missed.