St Clare Rest Home

Updated 23 May 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. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide 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.

Service and service type:

St Clare Rest Home is a 'care home'. It provides personal care for up to 18 older people with physical health needs. There were some people living with dementia. The home also provides respite services for people who want to stay at the home on a short-term basis. On the day of our visit there were 14 people living at St Clare Rest 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:

The inspection was unannounced.

What we did:

Before the inspection: We reviewed information available to us about this service. We checked the information that we held about the service and the service provider. This included previous inspection reports, the annual provider information return and statutory notifications sent to us by the provider about incidents and events that had occurred at the service. A notification is information about important events, which the service is required to send to us by law. We used all this information to decide which areas to focus on during our inspection.

During the inspection we looked at:

• Notifications we received from the service

• Two people’s care records and three people’s medicine records

• Records of accidents, incidents and complaints

• Staff files and training records

• Audits and quality assurance reports

During the inspection we spoke to:

• Five members of staff (registered manager, deputy manager, kitchen manager, a carer, a senior carer, a housekeeper)

• Six people using the service; two relatives

After the inspection;

We received feedback by email from a pharmacist, an admission avoidance matron and a chiropodist. They gave us permission to quote them in this report.

Updated 23 May 2019

About the service: St Clare Rest Home is a 'care home'. It provides personal care for up to 18 older people with physical health needs. There were some people living with dementia. The home also provides respite services for people who want to stay at the home on a short-term basis. On the day of our visit there were 14 people living at St Clare Rest Home, 12 people were living there permanently, and two people were living there on respite.

Accommodation was provided over three floors. Communal areas included a lounge, a dining space and a library. People had their own rooms. People had access to gardens at the rear of the home.

At the last inspection, we found the registered manager had not displayed the previous rating in line with our guidance on their website. It is a legal requirement that a provider's latest CQC inspection report rating is displayed at the service where a rating has been given. This is so that people, visitors and those seeking information about the service can be informed of our judgements. At this inspection, the provider had a new website. The previous rating was displayed clearly on the premises and on their website.

People’s experience of using this service:

People told us they felt cared for and we observed friendly interactions between people and staff. Staff respected people and enabled people to be independent. A person told us, “I’ve always been treated with respect, it’s my home.”

There was a positive culture where staff and management took pride in the care and support they provided There were sufficient staff to meet people’s needs, to give the support they needed and to spend quality time with them.

People’s medicines were managed safely. Before they came to live at the home, people’s needs were fully assessed to ensure that staff could meet their needs appropriately. People had access to a range of healthcare professionals and services. An admission avoidance matron told us, “There is good communication between staff. They know the people well. Staff know when to call us for help.”

People were safe and were supported by staff who were trained to recognise the signs of any potential abuse. Staff had been trained in safeguarding and knew what action to take if they had any concerns about people’s safety or welfare. People’s risks were identified and assessed appropriately. Staff knew how to keep people safe in an emergency, such as a fire.

People were supported by staff whose suitability was checked through a robust recruitment process. Staff completed relevant training and were experienced in their roles to provide effective care to people. Staff told us they felt well supported, received regular supervisions and an annual appraisal.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. People had a range of structured activities available. People were supported to maintain relationships that were important to them.

Care plans guided staff about people’s needs and how to meet them. Staff supported people to be involved in decisions about their care. No-one living at the home required end of life care at the time of the inspection, staff spent time with people to understand their end of life wishes which were recorded.

Staff, people and relatives told us they were given opportunities to give their views on the service and felt confident that feedback was listened to and acted upon.

This service met the characteristics of Good. More information is in the ‘Detailed Findings’ below.

Rating at the last inspection: Requires Improvement. The last inspection report was published on 1 May 2018.

Why we inspected: This was a planned comprehensive inspection that was scheduled to take place in line with Care Quality Commission (CQC) scheduling guidelines for adult social care services.

Follow up: We will review the service in line with our methodology for 'Good' services.

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