25 July 2019
During a routine inspection
Roberta House is a residential care home providing personal care to 16 people most of who are living with Korsakov’s syndrome and had a history of alcohol dependence.
Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided. At the time of our inspection one person was in receipt of personal care.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People told us they felt safe living at Roberta House. However, we found when safeguarding incidents occurred, staff did not follow correct processes and reporting procedures. Although managers took action to investigate concerns, they did not inform the Local Authority safeguarding team or the Care Quality Commission (CQC) as required.
Managers did not always understand and comply with their regulatory responsibilities. We found some care plans were out of date and did not contain the level of detail need. Audits and quality assurance processes did not identify and act on the issues identified during our inspection.
The provider had identified that an additional staff member during the day would be beneficial to help meet people’s needs. They were in the process of recruiting new staff members to cover this post.
People’s care was based on their needs and preferences. People were supported to do things they enjoyed. People were independent and chose how to spend their time. Complaints were responded to appropriately.
People were involved in their assessment to ensure the service could meet their needs. Staff had received the training and support required to enable them to fulfil their roles. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.
People told us they were happy living at Roberta House and liked the staff team that supported them. We observed people be supported to express their opinions about their care. People and staff had positive relationships based on mutual trust. Staff understood people’s conditions and needs well and were responsive to these.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
The last rating for this service was good (published 17 March 2017).
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
Enforcement
We have identified breaches in relation to safeguarding incidents and quality assurance processes at this inspection.
Full information about CQC’s regulatory response to the more serious concerns found during inspections is added to reports after any representations and appeals have been concluded.
Follow up
We will request an action plan for the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.