Background to this inspection
Updated
29 November 2016
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
This inspection took place on 12 October 2016 and was unannounced.
The inspection team consisted of one inspector and an expert by experience. An expert by experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of service. Their area of expertise was dementia care. As part of the inspection we looked at the information we held about the service. This included statutory notifications, which are notifications the provider must send us to inform us of certain events. The provider had sent us a Provider Information Return (PIR) before the inspection. A PIR is a form that asks the provider to give key information about the home, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We also contacted the local authority and commissioners for information they held about the service. This helped us to plan the inspection.
During the inspection we carried out observations of the care and support people received. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI) to observe how care was provided for people who were unable to speak with us. We spoke with nine people who lived at the home, three relatives, five staff members, the registered manager and the provider. We looked at three records about people’s care and support, three staff files, medicine records for three people and systems used for monitoring the quality of care provided.
Updated
29 November 2016
This inspection was unannounced and took place on 12 October 2016. At the last inspection in October 2013, we found the provider was meeting all of the requirements of the regulations we reviewed.
Homestead Care Home is registered to provide accommodation for up to 30 people with dementia or mental health issues who require personal care and support. On the day of the inspection there were 25 people living at the home. There was a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
People told us they felt safe. Staff knew how to identify and report the risk of potential abuse. There were sufficient numbers of staff available to meet people’s care and support needs. People were kept safe by staff who supported them to manage risks. People told us they received their medicines at the right time and systems used to store and manage medicines were safe.
People received support from staff who had the skills and knowledge to meet their care and support needs. Staff received training relevant to their role and felt supported by the registered manager. People were asked for their consent before care was provided. Where appropriate, people’s capacity had been assessed and decisions made in people’s best interests. People were happy with the food and drink provided and had access to healthcare when required.
People were supported by staff who were friendly and kind. People and their relatives were involved in decisions about their care and support and staff had a good understanding of people’s personal preferences. People were supported by staff in a way that promoted their independence and maintained their privacy and dignity.
People and their relatives contributed to the planning of their care and support. A programme of activities was available and people were encouraged to follow their interests. People knew who to contact if they were unhappy about any aspect of the care and support. There was a system in place to manage complaints and the registered manager ensured learning took place from people’s experiences.
People told us they liked living at the home and felt it was well managed. Staff spoke positively about the registered manager and provider and felt supported in their role. The provider was involved in the management of the home. There were systems in place to monitor the quality of care provided which were used to drive improvement.