THE distraught boss of an Inverclyde care company fears he will have to close his business after suffering what he claims has been ‘unfair treatment’ at the hands of Inverclyde Council.
Jim Steele, managing director of Karma Healthcare, said that his company does not have the finances to last for another three months, meaning that almost 50 people could be at risk of losing their jobs.
He said the firm faces closure after 27 clients were ‘handed back’ to Inverclyde Council by an ‘inexperienced management team’ without his knowledge.
Jim claims he has now paid out more than £40,000 in wages for staff to sit at home due to the dramatic reduction in the number of service users.
The company, which operates from a base in Gourock, provides care at home services across Inverclyde, offering support with personal care, housework, food preparation, and medication.
Jim is calling for Inverclyde Council to return to 27 clients to Karma Healthcare to ‘redress the balance’ of care services across Inverclyde and to help the business get back on its feet.
He said the firm's treatment at the hands of the council has highlighted wider issues in the care framework which is in place in Inverclyde.
Jim added: “Inverclyde Council is not interested in the true cost of care or the quality of it.
“I am not bringing in revenue to support me paying people.
“The business is reduced but I still have the same overheads.
“I am asking them to be realistic and to support a local business.
“This issue is far bigger than Karma Healthcare.”
At the start of this year, the firm was issued with an improvement notice by the Care Inspectorate after inspectors highlighted ‘significant concerns’ over the quality of its services.
The report detailed issues with medication, leadership, and auditing.
Even after Jim completed a capacity versus demand analysis which demonstrated that the firm could cover the clients, the council did not return them.
Jim said giving the clients away to other care providers is creating a lot of unfairness in the system.
Inverclyde Council pays Karma Healthcare per visit which can be anything from 15 minutes to an hour.
Jim said the care framework in Inverclyde is ‘lopsided’ and added that he was facing an uphill battle to get his firm back on track.
He added: “Karma Healthcare has been denied any opportunity to stabilise and other providers have benefitted from an artificial surge in demand.
"If we had 27 clients and the care we provided was terrible, I would understand and this would not be an issue.
“The Care Inspectorate did not suggest we had to give up clients.
“We made incredible progress over a three-month period.
“We had done all the work and made all the changes.
“I am fighting to get our clients back but it is a losing battle.
“I’m not asking for favours; I am asking for a rebalancing of the system.”
Jim has created his own ‘framework stability strategy’ which he said could help protect both care providers and service users.
The strategy prevents providers from being pushed below a safe, operating level – regardless of the cause – and protects the continuity of care for service users.
Jim has suggested the introduction of a ‘sustainable operations threshold’ – a minimum weekly operating level which is required for a provider to maintain safe staffing levels, regulatory compliance, financial viability, and continuity of care.
If a provider’s hours fall below this, the framework stability strategy activates, meaning that the provider is prioritised for new allocations until their stability as a business has been restored.
Jim said: “The experience used to illustrate the issue happened to me but it could have happened to any provider on the framework.
“The problem is not personal – it is systemic.
“This is not a reward nor a penalty. It is a risk-management mechanism designed to protect the framework itself.
“It is not a request for special treatment. It is a proposal to strengthen the framework for everyone.”
An Inverclyde HSCP spokesperson said: “An improvement notice was issued by the Care Inspectorate to Karma Healthcare in January following an inspection of the service.
“We worked with Karma Healthcare to support their improvement, and this included an agreement to reassign some people’s care during this time due to concerns raised by the Care Inspectorate.
“Following on from this, the Care Inspectorate will determine when the improvement notice will be lifted.
“However, senior officers continue to support Karma Healthcare to ensure that service users and their families receive quality care.
“The wellbeing of service users is of the utmost importance.”
