Background to this inspection
Updated
4 May 2016
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, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
This inspection took place on 16 and 17 March 2016. The first day was unannounced but the registered provider was notified that of our visit on the second day.
The inspection was carried out by an Adult Social Care Inspector.
Before our visit, we reviewed all the information we had in relation to the service. This included notifications, comments, concerns and safeguarding information. Our visit involved looking at seven care plans and other records such as three staff recruitment files, training records, policies and procedures and complaints files.
Before the inspection, the provider completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. This was returned to us when asked and we used it to inform our judgements for this visit.
We spoke with the Local Authority Commissioning Team and the Safeguarding Team and they expressed no concerns about the service.
We checked to see if a Healthwatch visit had taken place. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion created to gather and represent the views of the public. They have powers to enter registered services and comment on the quality of care provided. No Healthwatch visit had taken place at Stone House.
We spoke with three people who used the service, three members of staff and a visiting relative. We also observed care practice within the service and the interactions between service users. We provided the registered manager with a poster to display informing people of our visit and to encourage them to share their views.
We looked around the premises and found that standards of hygiene, safety and decoration were being maintained.
Updated
4 May 2016
We carried out an unannounced inspection of Stone House on 16th of March 2016. We returned on the 17th of March and that visit had been announced.
Stone House is a care home providing personal care for up to 35 older people. All bedrooms are single with en suite facilities. There is a large dining room and a few small lounges. Accommodation is on two floors and access between floors is via a passenger lift or the stairs. There is an outside patio area and a sun terrace.
We last visited the service in May 2014 and found that the registered provider had met all of the regulations that applied to residential social care at that time.
The service has 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.
People told us that they were happy living at Stone House and felt safe living there. They said they felt cared about and had their needs met. They were given a choice in how they wanted to live their lives and were complimentary about the registered manager.
People lived in an environment that was clean and hygienic. The premises were well maintained and furniture provided was of good quality. The environment was designed to enable people to move independently and remain safe.
People were further protected by the robust recruitment of new staff. The registered provider demonstrated that staff received up to date training on topics which related to the needs of people.
The nutritional needs of people were met and when people were at risk of malnutrition, prompt action was taken. Medication was well managed and promoted the health of people who used the service.
People received care that was personalised and met their needs effectively. Care plans were checked on a regular basis to ensure they were accurate and up to date. Care plans included an acknowledgement of the health needs of people but also placed emphasis on their social history and interests. We saw that care practice matched the information included within care plans.
An activity programme was in place and ensured that people had the opportunity to join in if they wished. People were provided with the opportunity to remain independent in pursuing their own interests both within and outside of the service and in maintaining their own personal care.
People did not have any complaints but were confident that the registered manager would listen to them and act upon them. No complaints had been received by the registered manager who stated that they preferred to be proactive in dealing with issues before a formal complaint was made.
The registered manager adopted an open and transparent style of manager and sought the views of all concerned about how the standards of care in Stone House could be maintained and improved upon. The registered manager also demonstrated a thorough knowledge of the individual needs of people living there and had sought to refine organisational records to achieve a smoother running of the service.