St Judes

Updated 16 October 2019

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 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 care service.

St Judes is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as 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 on the first day and announced on the second day.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We checked our systems for any feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We checked information the service had shared with us in notifications they are required to send to us.

The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report.

We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with five people who used the service and two relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with the registered manager, three care staff, a domestic and the activities co-ordinator. We spent time in the communal areas of the home including the lounge/dining areas observing how staff supported and interacted with people. We reviewed a range of records. This included two care plan records, multiple medication records, two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service including polices and procedures, staff training records, satisfaction surveys, complaints, accidents and incidents and health and safety checks.

Updated 16 October 2019

About the service

St Judes is a residential care home and was providing personal care to 25 people aged 65 and over at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to 27 people. The care home accommodates people in one adapted building over two floors.

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

People felt safe living at St Judes and felt at ease to approach staff with any concerns. Staff had completed safeguarding training so that they knew what signs to look for of potential abuse.

There were enough staff on duty to keep people safe. Appropriate recruitment checks had been completed to ensure staff were suitable to work with people. Staff had completed training considered essential to support people’s needs and to work safely. Staff spoke positively about the training and support they received. They knew about risks associated with people’s care so they could manage these appropriately. People received the medicines they were prescribed to maintain their health and medicines were stored safely.

The home was clean, tidy, and well maintained and staff followed safe infection control practices to reduce the risk of the spread of infection.

People had individual care plans detailing their needs. 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 and refresher training was planned to remind them of the principles of the Mental Capacity Act.

People enjoyed the food provided and menus showed choices were available each day.

People told us the staff were kind and caring and treated them with dignity and respect. All interactions we observed were respectful and professional. People were supported and encouraged to join in with daily activities that took place within the home.

People, visitors and staff had opportunities to share their views of the home in either meetings or satisfaction surveys which showed positive outcomes. The provider had a system in place for responding to complaints and people knew who to contact if they had any concerns.

An electronic care planning system had been implemented at the home to help improve records management and to support staff in their work. However, records relating to risks were not always fully detailed to show they had been responded to. Audit processes had not identified areas needing improvement in regard to record keeping. They had also not identified potential risks related to the environment and equipment.

The management team were dedicated to improving the ongoing care and support people received and spoke of plans to further improve the service. Both people and staff had confidence in the management team and staff felt valued and well supported. This had resulted in a positive, encouraging and supportive culture within the home.

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 (17 March 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.