Wheaton Aston Care Home

Updated 31 January 2019

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This unannounced comprehensive inspection took place on 13 and 15 November 2018.

The inspection team consisted of 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 older people care services.

Prior to the inspection we reviewed the information we held about the service and notifications we had received. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send us by law.

We spoke with 12 people receiving a service; received feedback from five relatives and seven members of staff, which included the registered manager. We spent time talking with people and observing the interactions between them and staff. We also spoke to a visiting health professional.

Some people living at the service were unable to communicate their experience of living at the home in detail with us as they were living with dementia. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a specific way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people, who could not comment directly on their experience.

We observed various aspects of care being delivered throughout the day. We reviewed four care files, and other records relating to the management of the service including quality audits, health and safety records, accidents and incidents and medicine records.

Updated 31 January 2019

Wheaton Aston Court Care Home provided nursing and personal care for up to 30 people some of whom were living with dementia. At the time of this inspection 29 People were living there. 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.

At our last inspection we found that improvements were needed regarding staffing levels. During this inspection we found significant improvements had been made and have und the evidence

There was a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

Staff treated people with the dignity and respect when supporting them.

Staff ensured people received care which was kind and compassionate. People had developed relationships with other people living there and staff. Staff spent time chatting with people and saw this as a part of their role.

People received personalised care and support specific for their needs and individual preferences. Staff saw people as individuals and supported them in a person-centred way. 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 were encouraged to socialise, and keep in touch with people who were important to them. All staff were involved in ensuring people were involved in activities that interested them if they wished to be and knew that activities had a positive impact on their wellbeing.

The management team provided strong leadership and staff were clear about the values of the service and had a positive person-centred attitude.

People, relatives and staff were positive about the service. Relatives spoke kindly of the registered manager and their staff.

People felt safe and staff demonstrated a good understanding of what constituted abuse and how to report if concerns were raised. Risks were managed in as least restrictive ways as possible to protect people’s freedom. People’s rights were protected because the service followed the appropriate legal processes. Medicines were safely managed on people’s behalf where needed.

There were safe staff recruitment and selection processes in place. People were involved in recruiting new staff into the service. Staffing levels were flexible to meet people’s individual needs. Staff received training and regular supervision and support to keep their skills up to date in order to support people appropriately.

There were opportunities for people and people that matter to them to raise issues, concerns and feedback compliments.

Quality monitoring was in place leading to continuous improvement. Regular resident meetings were held to ensure people’s opinions were listened to and actions taken.

The management team strived to provide the best possible service for people. Various methods were used to assess the quality and safety of the service people received and changes and improvements were made in response.