Cellulitus in a care home

beccam

Pressure area care is a big deal in any care setting and if these sores have only developed recently whilst in the care of the nursing home then you have the right to speak with/complain to the manager about it.

Anyone who's mobility is poor should have pressure relieving cushions on the chair they are sitting on and should also have their position changed regularly if they are unable to do so themselves.

This doesn't have to be big shifts in position just 'wiggling' their bum from side to side or standing up then sitting down again. If she is very immobile then it might be worth having a rest period in bed during the day when she can lie on her side and relieve pressure.

Anyone who is in bed all day should be on a pressure relieving mattress and also turned regularly.

I would ask to speak to the manager, request to see the pressure care assessments and careplaning to deal with it.
There should also be care plans for any dressings/wound care which should show how often dressings are renewed and any change in the wound.
Most areas should also keep note of position changes...how often they are done, what changes were made etc.

tattoed_bum

my dh had cellulitis and was admitted to hospital just 3 weeks ago ,he said it was unbelievably painful ,could it be the other way around that having the cellulitis caused the mobility therefore the pressure sores ,
im not excusing the care home that she is in as there should have been more notice taken of her condition

alwaysonthego_2

When I worked in care I was the home's specialised carer on pressure sores and I would train other staff how to prevent them. Pressure sores can be prevented easily. If a resident is sat down all day they should be stood up for 5 minutes every hour and sat on a pressure cushion. They should be laid on a pressure mattress on a night. Massage is particulary good and residents should have sudacreme (which gives them a protective layer) applied on their bottom. Do district nurses visit, does she have a social worker?

Catseyez

Snuggles wrote: »

Social services cannot make referrals to POVA, only the employer or CSCI (now CQC) can make referrals.

To the OP: what you can do is to contact Social Services and ask to speak to the Adult Safeguarding Team. Does your grandmother have a care manager?

Also, you could contact your local Age Concern as some of them are funded to deal with queries like your's.

Reluctant_spender

Snuggles wrote: »

Social services cannot make referrals to POVA, only the employer or CSCI (now CQC) can make referrals.

Must be different in different areas! Having held many strategy meetings where the referral was made by either a Social Services or a MAT Team as the reporting person.

dontone

beccam wrote: »

Pressure area care is a big deal in any care setting and if these sores have only developed recently whilst in the care of the nursing home then you have the right to speak with/complain to the manager about it.

Anyone who's mobility is poor should have pressure relieving cushions on the chair they are sitting on and should also have their position changed regularly if they are unable to do so themselves.

This doesn't have to be big shifts in position just 'wiggling' their bum from side to side or standing up then sitting down again. If she is very immobile then it might be worth having a rest period in bed during the day when she can lie on her side and relieve pressure.

Anyone who is in bed all day should be on a pressure relieving mattress and also turned regularly.

I would ask to speak to the manager, request to see the pressure care assessments and careplaning to deal with it.
There should also be care plans for any dressings/wound care which should show how often dressings are renewed and any change in the wound.
Most areas should also keep note of position changes...how often they are done, what changes were made etc.

Exactly - took the words right out of my keyboard.
Whether the home is short staffed or not, there is no excuse for leaving your GM in that chair for long periods of time without the staff making some sort of effort to assist her movement or putting some sort of pressure reliving cushion there. Some carers (due to inadequate training or plain stubborness) believe that putting a cushion/mattress under an immobile resident prevents sores, which isn't the case. A resident in that situation must be moved into another postition at least once every 1 - 2 hours to help prevent sores developing.
I work for a place that supplies cushions and mattresses and we get no end of complaints regarding residents getting sores due to carers not having a clue how to use the equipment correctly :mad: all because they get these things and don't read the instructions properly or have never been trained in the first place on how to use them
I don't think that it's right or fair that they have removed her air mattress too. Did she pay for that herself or was it supplied by the home? If she or your family purchased it then they have no right to take it and use it for someone else (as there is a risk of cross contamination). Even if it is theirs, they must have spares so that everybody has a opportunity to be as comfortable as possible.
May I ask is your GM incontinent? Because that also hastens the development of sore and infections, especially if she has soiled and been sitting in it a long time.
Is this home part of a large group? (It should say on the nursing home sign or any literature you may have from there) If so if you get no joy out of complaining to the manger of the home, the Head Office in charge of the home should have a help desk where you can make your complaint.
Hope this helps.
Good luck in what you decide to do.

Lavender13

As your grandmother has been poorly, is she eating properly, or if frail is someone helping her? Because in older people , poor nutrition/hydration can contribute to pressure sores , sometimes very quickly. She will also need to have adequate diet to help the sores heal. Another thing to consider is an underlying physical medical condition which could contribute to sores, the hospital will hopefully screen her for these i.e. diabetic
Poor manual handling can contribute to skin damage.

Snuggles

Reluctant_spender wrote: »

Must be different in different areas! Having held many strategy meetings where the referral was made by either a Social Services or a MAT Team as the reporting person.

Hi Reluctspender, no it's the same in all areas. To consider someone for inclusion on the POVA list (I assume that is what you meant!), the Independent Safeguarding Authority (previously the Department of Health), can only consider referrals which have come from the employer.

But I'm now thinking maybe you meant referral to the local adult protection team?

annie_d

You can ask to see your gran's nursing notes. There is no charge for this. In these notes should be a "Waterlow" score. This will indicate what risk she is at from skin deterioration and whether she needs to have specialised equipment i.e. chairs, mattress overlays etc. It is the repsonsibility of the nursing home to provide these.

emmielou

Thanks for all the replies.

I went to the home today and the sister let slip that she was the second person they've had get cellulitus in that area so clearly they need to be reviewing their care.

I'm going to speak to the manager and ask for a copy of her notes. I will be pointing out that it just isn't acceptable. It is all down her thighs and looks so painful. we are also going to have a look at some other care homes.

Gran is actually very well otherwise so there is no reason for this, I said to her today that she needs to get up and have a bit of a move aroud and she was happy with this but said the problem was trying to get up. I have told her that she needs to ask them to help her up.