Patients were forced to wear incontinence pads and medicine was not administered safely at a residential home for people with dementia.

Littlestone Lodge in Bow Arrow Lane, Dartford, was criticised by the CQC after an inspection in March called for “urgent improvements” to its 16-bed continuing care unit.

The problems at the unit were flagged after the governing body carried out an inspection of the 37 hospital wards and several other services under the direction of the Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust (KMPT).

The trust provides health and social care, including mental health and other specialist services, to more than 1.7million people.

The CQC spoke to more than 219 patients, relatives and carers and interviewed 329 members of staff before judging that the trust “required improvement”.

Under a new programme of inspections, all of England’s adult social care services regulated by CQC are given a rating according to whether they are safe, effective, caring, responsive and well led.

“At Littlestone Lodge, inspectors identified poor practice and unsafe care" - CQC spokesman

In particular Littlestone concerned inspectors and they issued two warning notices, and said the trust had been failing to assess and monitor its service.

Speaking after the report was published today, a spokesman said: “At Littlestone Lodge, inspectors identified poor practice and unsafe care, including the unsafe, covert administration of medicine.

“Patients were not receiving effective assessment and care for physical health and mobility needs or pain management, and all patients were wearing incontinence pads whether or not they were needed.

“At the time of inspection, the inspectors requested that immediate action was taken to address the physical health needs of two patients.”

However, the CQC did say the centre had made “many improvements” and had met the requirements of warning since they made.

As well criticism for the level of service at Littlestone, the CQC also commented on delays in finding beds for mental health patients at another unit in the trust, including one example where a patient had to sleep on a bean bag because a bed was not available.

Dr Paul Lelliott, the CQC’s deputy chief inspector of hospitals, did reserve praise for the level of staff at the trust.

He said: "It is a credit to all the staff employed by the trust that we have rated the trust as ‘good’ for staff being caring. In fact we rated the forensic service and the wards for people with learning disabilities as outstanding in how caring staff were.

"The areas for improvement were already in our plans and we have now moved with speed to accelerate change..." - Angela McNab, KMPT chief executive

"We also rated the forensic services ‘outstanding’ overall.

"In all clinical areas we found staff who were compassionate and passionate about delivering good care to patients."

Angela McNab, chief executive of KMPT, said: "This is a vitally important report. Whilst the CQC rated the Trust’s overall care as ‘good’ and ‘outstanding’ in very many areas, we are not complacent.

"At the time of the CQC inspection the areas for improvement were already in our plans and we have now moved with speed to accelerate change.

"Staff were found to be overwhelmingly compassionate, kind and motivated to involve patients in their care.

"Patient and carers were positive about their experience at KMPT and the processes for patient and carer engagement and feedback were recognised as being good.

"It was also recognised that the Trust has an excellent strategy based on driving improvement in clinical practice and that staff know the strategy and understand it.

"Nevertheless, safety, dignity and nothing less than excellent patient care is what motivates us. As the CQC recognised in very many areas we are ‘good’ and ‘outstanding’, so we have the skillsets.

"This report is important in making sure we apply those standards across the board.

"That is why we have either already addressed or are in the process of addressing with our partners the issues raised, and why we thank the CQC for their work in helping us further improve our services."

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