Otterburn

Updated 22 January 2022

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of CQC’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic we are looking at how services manage infection control and visiting arrangements. This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection prevention and control measures the provider had in place. We also asked the provider about any staffing pressures the service was experiencing and whether this was having an impact on the service.

This inspection took place on 18 January 2022 and was announced. We gave the service 24 hours notice of the inspection.

Updated 22 January 2022

About the service: Otterburn is residential care home that is purpose built and, provides personal care and nursing for up to 30 people across three separate units, each supporting 10 people. These units are called Otter, Fox and Squirrel. Care and support is provided to people with complex health needs including rare forms of dementia, physical disabilities, mental health needs and brain injury and neurological disorders. At the time of the inspection 29 people were living at the home.

People’s experience of using this service:

¿ People received safe care. Medicines were managed safely; infection control arrangements were effective in reducing cross infections and there were enough staff to support people and keep them safe.

¿ People were supported by skilled staff with the right knowledge and training. This was important as people had complex and multiple needs.

¿ Staff involved people in decisions about their care and obtained the necessary consent for the care and support provided.

¿ Staff ensured people had access to healthcare services by making appropriate and timely referrals and following their recommendations and advice.

¿ Staff had respectful, caring relationships with people they supported. They respected people's dignity and privacy and promoted their independence.

¿ People's care and support met their needs and reflected their preferences. The provider upheld people's human rights.

¿ People were involved when their care plans were reviewed and were actively involved in decision making in relation to their care and support.

¿ People felt supported and it was apparent from our discussions with staff and what we saw throughout the inspection, that staff cared about people and their well-being.

¿ Effective quality assurance processes were in place to monitor and improve the quality of the service. There was a positive, open and empowering culture.

Rating at last inspection: The rating at the comprehensive last inspection undertaken on 23 and 24 November 2017 was Requires Improvement and the report was published on 22 February 2018. After this inspection we undertook a focused inspection on 20 June 2018 and the report was published on 10 August 2018. At the focused inspection we looked at how the provider had progressed areas of improvement to meet legal requirements.

Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection based on the ratings at the last comprehensive and focused inspection. The rating has improved to Good overall.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor the service through the information we receive until we return, as part of the inspection programme. If any concerning information is received we may inspect sooner.

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