SummaryThis inspection was carried out by two inspectors and a specialist advisor. We spent a day at the home, talking to and observing people who lived in the home, visitors and staff at all levels. We sampled the records. After the visit we spoke to several relatives and professional visitors to the home on the telephone to find out their views.
We considered all the evidence we had gathered under the outcomes we inspected. We used the information to answer the five questions we always ask;
' Is the service caring?
' Is the service responsive?
' Is the service safe?
' Is the service effective?
' Is the service well led?
This is a summary of what we found:
Is the service safe?
We spoke to several people who lived in the home and several relatives/visitors. People told us they felt safe. One relative told us, 'I am happy that (person's name) is safe there.'
People were safe and their health and welfare needs were being met because staff were supported to gain appropriate skills and experience.
We found that the home's safeguarding procedures were robust and staff understood their role in safeguarding the people they supported. We checked staff training records and saw that staff had received recent training in safeguarding vulnerable adults.
CQC monitors the operation of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards, (DoLS), which applies to care homes. We found that the manager understood her responsibilities in relation to the law and had planned further training for staff so that they would be made aware of new developments in this respect..
We checked people's care plans and found them to be detailed, relevant and up to date. This meant that staff had appropriate information for them to provide safe and appropriate care.
We found that there was a need for some records of the review of the plans to be more detailed and the manager showed us that she had planned to provide more training for staff in this respect.
We found that care was provided in an environment that was accessible, clean and adequately maintained.
Is the service effective?
People told us that they were happy with the care they received. One person told us, 'It's nice here...it looks nice and we all get on.'
We found that care staff knew the people they supported very well.
Staff training records showed that staff had received appropriate training in a number of relevant areas, including food hygiene, Huntington's disease, moving and handling and infection control. This meant that staff had the appropriate skills and knowledge to ensure that people received safe, appropriate and effective care.
People's needs were assessed and care and support was planned and delivered in line with their individual care plans. We saw that people had regular access to a range of health and social care professionals which included general practitioners, dentists, chiropodists and opticians.
People had access to activities inside the home and in the community. Some people told us that they were pleased with the activities and others said that they would like there to be more activities and outings outside the home.
Is the service caring?
Staff demonstrated on the day of our visit that they treated people with respect and they sought consent before providing care and support.
We saw that care staff being patient with the people they were supporting.
Relatives and visitors told us that the manager and staff were supportive towards them when they had concerns or worries.
Is the service responsive?
Records showed that meetings were held between staff, people using the service and people's relatives/visitors to discuss on-going concerns and improvements at the home including meals, activities and laundry.
We found that care staff had regular one to one supervision meetings. This meant that care staff had the opportunity to discuss their training and development needs, welfare and any concerns they might have about the people they were caring for.
People living at the care home, their relatives and visitors told us that they would have no hesitation in telling the manager and staff if they were unhappy or had any complaints about the service they received. We were told that the manager and staff had listened when people had raised concerns.
Is the service well-led?
The manager whose name appears on this report no longer works at the home. Her name appears because it has not yet been removed from our register. The present manager has applied for registration.
We found that the manager had implemented changes which meant that the home now complied with the requirements of the relevant legislation. These included improvements in relation to the care, staff training and records. The manager told us about the measures she had planned to make sure that there were further improvements in relation to the records and staff training.
We saw that the manager was well known to the people who lived in the home and the relatives to whom we spoke. People told us that they had no difficulty in contacting the manager when they needed to do so.