A CARE home in Irvine has been praised by inspectors for improvements in the way it is run following a series of complaints.

Fullarton Care Home in Ayr Road had been ordered to improve its keeping of patient records, personal care plans and risk assessments.

It was also told to improve healthcare provision for patients after complaints in December and January that it was "inadequate" were upheld by the watchdog.

There had been further accusations of a lack of communication between staff members over residents' healthcare.

In a published report the Care Inspectorate welcomed the changes brought in by the home, but said that more could be done.

The report added: "We saw progress with the requirement made at the last complaint visit relating to staff seeking health input and advice and completing accurate records for people living in the care home.

"In discussions with the management team and reviewing records we could see that further progress could be made regarding staff taking action when a health concern was identified and ensuring that accurate records were completed, at all times

"Staff should continue to be pro-active when a health concern has been identified for a person receiving care."

The Care Inspectorate published their findings following an unnanounced visit to Fullarton on April 25.

Their report continued: "The service has initiated a Resident Archiving Form to ensure that all paperwork relating to a person receiving care , who is no longer resident in the home, is returned to the home administrator for archiving.

"The unit staff, the administrator and the management team are all involved in this process to ensure that records are collated and archived efficiently and held securely.

"The evidence that we saw showed that good progress had been made and records were being held securely and respectfully."

Fullarton Care Home, which is run by HC-One, is registered to provide care to a maximum of 90 older people.

At the time of the inspection there were 55 residents living there.

The report added: "We could see that staff were more vigilant when it came to identifying and acting on a health concern.

"The management team advised that they had discussed the findings of the last complaint with the staff team and they were 'shocked' and 'eager to improve their practice'.

"They feel confident that improvements have been made, however they feel they 'still have a way to go' and will continue to have oversight on direct care provision, liaison with external health professionals and record keeping."

A spokesperson for Fullarton said:“Our priority is always the wellbeing of our residents, and we take all feedback from the regulator very seriously. 

"While we were therefore pleased that the Care Inspectorate recognised the progress we have made at the home since their last visit, we remain solely committed to doing all we can to meet the specific areas for further improvement identified in their report.

"In line with our rigorous and ongoing action plan, we have introduced additional record keeping, reporting and escalation processes across our teams, as well as improving our staffing ratios throughout the home. 

"All staff have benefited from enhanced refresher training to better embed these processes."