Beechwood House Care Home

Updated 12 March 2020

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

Beechwood House is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections.

During the inspection-

We spoke with five people who used the service and four relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with eleven members of staff including the provider, registered manager, assistant manager, senior care workers, care workers and the chef.

We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records and four medication records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

Updated 12 March 2020

About the service

Beechwood House Care Home is a residential care home providing personal care and accommodation for up to 28 people. The provider specialises in the care of older people aged 65 and over. There were 22 people living at Beechwood House at the time of the inspection.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People were supported by staff that were caring and treated them with dignity and respect. Staff understood the needs of the people they supported well and knew them as a person. All the feedback we received from people and their relatives was positive.

People were supported by staff who had the skills and knowledge to meet their needs. Staff felt supported by the registered manager. Staff understood their role and received appropriate training that supported them in their roles.

Staff worked together with a range of healthcare professionals to achieve positive outcomes for people. Staff supported people to maintain important relationships and continue personal hobbies and interests.

Since 2016 onwards all organisations that provide publicly funded adult social care are legally required to follow the Accessible Information Standard [AIS]. The standard was introduced to make sure people are given information in a way they can understand. The registered manager was aware of the AIS and ensured information was shared in an accessible way.

People's concerns and complaints were listened and responded to. Accidents and incidents were reviewed. People and their relatives commented positively about the registered manager and the quality of care their family member received.

Quality monitoring systems were in place but not effective, the provider had not identified some minor shortfalls through their governance system. Specifically, with regards to medicine management. We recommend the provider consider current guidance on managing people’s medicines and take action to update their practice.

The registered manager had ensured all relevant legal requirements, including registration and safety obligations, and the submission of notifications, had been complied with. The registered manager felt staff had a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities. This was evident to us throughout the inspection.

Although most people had capacity some did not, and staff were not always working with these people within the principles of the MCA, and DoLS. We recommend the provider consider current guidance in Mental Capacity and DoLs in care homes and take action to update their practice.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published in June 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.