The 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.

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 completed by one inspector.

Service and service type

The 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. The Lodge is a care home without 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. However, a manager was in place and had started the registration process.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We looked at information sent to us since the last inspection, such as notifications about accidents and safeguarding alerts. 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 contacted the local authority safeguarding and the local infection control team for feedback. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 7 members of staff including the director, the manager, 2 senior carers, 3 care staff and maintenance staff. We also spoke with 2 people who used the service and 5 relatives. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us.

We looked around the home to review the facilities available for people and the infection prevention and control procedures in place. We also looked at a range of documentation including care files and daily records for 7 people and medication administration records for 5 people. We looked at 2 staff recruitment files and reviewed documentation relating to the management and running of the service such as audits and service safety records.

Updated 25 February 2023

About the service

The Lodge is a residential care home that is registered to provide support to 30 people aged 65 and over and people living with dementia. At the time of the inspection, 16 people were using the service.

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

The provider, new management team and staff had worked hard to make improvements to the service in a short space of time. We received positive feedback regarding the management team and their leadership of the service. There was a kind and caring culture at the service which was supported by staff who were passionate about caring for people. Governance systems had been implemented which had helped identify shortfalls which were addressed in a timely manner.

Fire safety issues had been addressed. People were supported by knowledgeable and skilled staff who understood and effectively managed risks to people’s safety and well-being. People were kept safe from abuse and concerns were appropriately reported.

People’s medicines had been administered safely. However, some records and medicine protocols needed improving and action was taken during the inspection. Accidents and incidents were monitored, reviewed and used positively to support learning. The service was clean and tidy and current government guidance was being followed.

Positive working relationships had been established with other professionals which had helped ensure people received the referrals and professional support they needed.

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.

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

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 26 August 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. However, the service remains rated requires improvement. This service has been rated requires improvement for the last 8 consecutive inspections.

Why we inspected

This focused inspection was carried out to follow up on action we told the provider to take at the last inspection. This report only covers our findings in relation to the key questions of safe and well led which contain those requirements. 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. However, we found improvements had been made to the safety, governance systems and oversight of the service. Please see the safe and well led sections of this full report.

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.

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

Recommendations

We have made a recommendation about quality assurance systems.

Follow up

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