About the service: Scarlet House is a nursing care home for up to 86 older people and people living with dementia. At the time of our inspection 65 people were living at Scarlet House or were staying at the home for short term respite.
The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. On the 1 February 2019, the manager became registered with the CQC. 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.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection:
We previously inspected the service on 13 and 15 November 2017 and awarded a rating of Requires Improvement. (The last report was published 19 January 2018). The provider had taken the required improvement actions and our rating of the service improved at this inspection. The legal requirement regarding people’s person-centred care had been met. However, the provider needed time to make some further improvements to ensure people always received person centred care, especially those living with dementia, to avoid breaching this legal requirement again in future and to improve the service.
Why we inspected:
We inspected this service as part of our ongoing Adult Social Care inspection programme. This was a planned inspection based on the previous Requires Improvement rating. We also follow up on progress against agreed action plans to address the breaches in regulation we found at our previous inspection in November 2017. Previous CQC ratings and the time since the last inspection were also taken into consideration.
People’s experience of using this service:
• People were safe living at Scarlet House.
• People did not always receive fully person-centred care. People told us sometimes staff didn’t always do the little things which would make them more comfortable. The manager and provider were aware of this and were taking action to improve staff skills, particularly in relation to training in supporting people living with dementia.
• People’s care records were not always current or reflective of their needs. People’s care plans were starting to become person centred, following improvement plans of the provider.
• People had access to a range of activities and events which they enjoyed, including music and movement and engagement from local community organisations.
• The manager and provider had clear plans to increase the stimulation and support people living with dementia received. This included refurbishment of the home’s nursing dementia unit to promote people’s independence and wellbeing.
• People’s dignity and rights were protected. People were supported by caring and compassionate staff.
• People and their relatives felt the service had improved since we had last inspected in November 2017. They felt the manager was approachable and were hoping for continued stability in the day to day management of the home.
• Care and nursing staff spoke positively about the service and felt they were supported and had access to appropriate training. Staff discussed the training and support they were receiving with the aim of the service making sustained improvements.
• People’s individual dietary needs and preferences were met.
• The provider and manager had a clear improvement plan for Scarlet House and had taken actions to ensure people’s needs were being met and their wellbeing maintained. This included a screening of new clients to ensure staff had the skills they required to meet their needs.
• The provider had provided additional support for the service whilst the management team became settled.
• The manager had a clear vision for the service and spoke positively about the changes they had made.
• People’s needs were met by sufficient numbers of staff who were available to ensure people’s safety and well-being.
• Staff understood their responsibility to report concerns and poor practices.
Follow up:
We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our inspection programme. If any concerning information is received we may inspect sooner.