Westwood Lodge

Updated 25 February 2023

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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Inspection team

One inspector and an Expert by Experience carried out this inspection. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

Westwood Lodge is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Westwood Lodge is a care home with nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. The provider was not asked to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to this inspection. A PIR is information providers send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 7 people who used the service and 8 relatives. We spoke with 7 staff members including the area director, the registered manager, a nurse, the activity coordinator, and 3 care staff. We reviewed a range of records including 5 people's care records and associated documents. We looked at multiple medication records. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures, audits and governance were reviewed.

Updated 25 February 2023

Westwood Lodge is a purpose-built home which provides nursing and personal care for up to 76 people; all rooms are for single use, with shared lounges and dining areas. The home is situated in its own grounds and has gardens with car parking spaces at the front of the home. There is a main building which accommodates people on two floors, and an adjacent single story building called Westwood House. At the time of the inspection, 75 people were using the service; 50 in the main building and 25 in Westwood House.

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

Systems in place helped safeguard people from the risk of abuse. Assessments of risk and safety and supporting measures in place minimised risks. Staff managed people's medicines safely. We saw staff followed infection prevention and control guidance to minimise risks related to the spread of infection.

Staffing levels were sufficient to meet people's needs and managers recruited staff safely. Staff followed an induction programme, and training was on-going throughout employment.

Staff thoroughly assessed people's needs prior to a service starting. Care plans included information about support required in areas such as nutrition, mobility and personal care to help inform care provision. Staff made appropriate referrals to other agencies and professionals when required.

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 told us they were well treated, and their equality and diversity were respected. People felt staff respected their privacy and dignity and took into account their views when agreeing on the support required. Staff identified people's communication needs and addressed these with appropriate actions.

Managers responded to complaints appropriately and used these to inform improvement to care provision. The provider was open and honest, in dealing with concerns raised. The management team were available for people to contact and undertook regular quality checks, to help ensure continued good standards of care.

The provider and registered manager followed governance systems which provided effective oversight and monitoring of the service. These governance systems and processes ensured the service provided to people was safe.

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 19 October 2022).

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service. At our last inspection, for those key questions not inspected, we used inherited ratings from the previous provider to calculate the overall rating. This inspection was undertaken to review the domain areas of Effective, Caring and Responsive not inspected at the last Inspection. We always look at the Well-led key question at each inspection.

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question at our last inspection in October 2022. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Westwood Lodge on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.