Archived: Arranmore Park Rest Home

Updated 6 May 2021

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.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

This inspection was undertaken by two inspectors. One on the premises and one at a remote site.

Service and service type

Arranmore Park Rest Home 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

We gave the service notice of the inspection. This was because we wanted to be sure the home was not in the middle of dealing with an active COVID-19 outbreak.

What we did before 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 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.

During the inspection

We spoke with two members of staff including the registered manager who is also the nominated individual and the deputy manager. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider. We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records, training and induction records, medicines administration records, three staff recruitment records and we looked at a variety of records relating to the management of infections and cleanliness. We walked around the premises to observe the environment and care delivery.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the registered manager to validate evidence found.

Updated 6 May 2021

About the service

Arranmore Park Rest Home is a care home providing accommodation for up to 35 older people, including people living with dementia. At the time of the inspection there were 33 people living at the home.

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

People were not adequately protected from the risks of infection from COVID-19. We inspected the home to see how staff were following national and local COVID-19 guidance including the correct use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and observe how people were cared for. We found people were not adequately protected from the risk of acquiring infections because systems for preventing the spread of infections were not implemented effectively. The provider had not followed the latest guidance on COVID-19 testing for staff and people and latest guidance on allowing visitors in care homes. Infection prevention and control practices needed to be improved in a number of areas. People were safely supported to receive their medicines as prescribed however, some improvements were required in relations to medicine administration records and the monitoring of time specific medicines. We made a recommendation about medicines management.

People were protected from the risk of abuse and avoidable harm by staff who understood how to recognise, respond and report concerns. The registered manager had robust and safe recruitment procedures. The provider monitored the safety of the premises.

People were not always supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff did not support them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service did not always support this practice.

People’s consent in relation to COVID-19 testing and allowing visitors in the home had not been adequately sought. Staff had received regular training in a number of areas however, we found shortfalls in a number of areas. The registered manager took immediate action to address this and had started booked some of the training before the inspection.

While the provider had arrangements to check the quality of the service we found they had not complied and implemented best practice guidance in relation to infection prevention and control in line with government policy. The registered manager regularly checked the quality of the care provided and people’s experiences however the provider had not established formal oversight on the registered manager. People spoke positively about staff and the registered manager. There was a positive culture throughout the service which focused on providing care that was individualised and promoted independence.

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 05 June 2018).

Why we inspected

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. 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.

We inspected and found there was a concern with infection prevention and control measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, so we widened the scope of the inspection to become a focused inspection which included the key questions of safe, effective and well-led only.

We reviewed the information we held about the service. No areas of concern were identified in the other key questions. We therefore did not inspect them. Ratings from previous comprehensive inspections for those key questions were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection.

The overall rating for the service has changed from good to requires improvement. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

Enforcement:

We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the exceptional circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection. We will continue to discharge our regulatory enforcement functions required to keep people safe and to hold providers to account where it is necessary for us to do so.

We have identified breaches in relation to the concerns raised about infection prevention and control, staff training seeking consent and good governance. Please see the safe, effective and well-led sections of this full report.

You can see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of this full report.

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

Follow up

We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.