Barnfield Manor Care Home

Updated 14 December 2022

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.

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

The inspection was carried out by 2 inspectors. 1 of the inspectors specialised in medicines. An Expert by Experience also supported 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

Barnfield Manor Care Home 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. Barnfield Manor Care Home 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 not a registered manager in post. A new manager had been in post for 2 months and was in the process of submitting their application to register. We are awaiting this application and will assess this once received.

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 Healthwatch and professionals who work with the service. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 3 people who used the service and 12 members of staff including the regional director, the development and governance director, peripatetic manager, nurse, senior care assistants, care assistants and domestic staff. We also spoke with 10 relatives about their experience of the care provided.

We reviewed a range of records. This included 2 people's care records and multiple medication records. We looked at 3 staff files in relation to recruitment. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were also reviewed.

Updated 14 December 2022

About the service

Barnfield Manor Care Home is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care to up to 39 people. The service provides support to adults of all ages and people living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 15 people using the service.

Barnfield Manor Care Home accommodates people in one purpose-built building across 2 floors. The home has several communal areas and an accessible garden with outdoor seating.

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

Medicines were not always effectively managed. There were inconsistencies in the recording of medicines administered and the ordering system was not effective as still prescribed medicines were being disposed of creating unnecessary and costly waste.

The management team had a medicines action plan in place to make improvements in this area, however the areas identified required implementing and embedding to evidence sustained good practice

People were protected from the risk of abuse, safeguarding incidents had been correctly reported, recorded and investigated. Risks which affected people's daily lives, in relation to their mobility, skin integrity and weight were documented and known by staff.

We received mixed opinions from staff and relatives about the staffing level, we raised this with the provider who told us at busy times support was available from the management team, the provider also told us of the of their plans to make the manager more accessible.

Systems and processes were not always effective in monitoring and mitigating medicine risks in a timely and sustained way.

The provider had made improvements in the recording and managerial oversight of accidents and incidents and health and safety. The service had an improvement plan in place which was regularly reviewed and updated. People’s care plans had been reviewed and updated following our previous inspection. We found these contained person centred information on people’s preferences and choices.

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

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 18 February 2022). The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

We carried out an unannounced focused inspection of this service on 29 September 2021. Breaches of legal requirements were found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions safe and well-led which contain those requirements.

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.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. The overall rating for the service has remained requires improvement based on the findings of this inspection.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Barnfield Manor Care Home 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.