Berry Hill Care Home

Updated 9 February 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 21 January 2022 and was announced. We gave the service 24 hours notice of the inspection.

Updated 9 February 2022

We carried out an unannounced inspection of the service on 19 April 2018. Berry Hill Care Home is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation, nursing and personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Berry Hill Care Home is registered to accommodate up to 66 older people in one building. Some of these people were living with dementia. At the time of the inspection, 38 people were using the service.

At the last inspection on 7 September 2017, we asked the provider to take action to make improvements to the safety of the service, the assessment and management of the risks associated with people’s care, the support people at risk of dehydration received, care planning documentation and overall governance of the service. During this inspection we found the required improvements had been made however, further work still needed to be done to ensure all care planning documentation was reflective of people’s current needs.

During the home’s previous inspection on 7 September 2017, we rated the home overall as ‘Requires Improvement’ with the question, ‘Is the service well-led?’ rated as ‘Inadequate’. Because of the improvements made at this home since their last inspection, the overall rating has now changed to ‘Good’ although the question, ‘Is the service responsive?’ remains rated as ‘Requires Improvement’. The details of the reasons why are explained in the summary below and in the body of the main report.

A registered manager was present during the inspection. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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 felt safe living at the home. The risks to people’s safety were now appropriately assessed and acted on. The process of investigating accidents and incidents and reducing to the risk to people’s safety had improved. Medicines were now stored and handled safely. There were enough staff in place to support people. Staff understood the processes for protecting people from avoidable harm. Robust recruitment procedures were followed to ensure people were protected from unsuitable staff. The home was clean and tidy and staff understood how to reduce the risk of the spread of infection.

People were now supported to remain hydrated and records used to record the amount people drank was recorded and monitored. People’s health needs were assessed and provided in line with current legislation and best practice guidelines. People told us staff knew how to support them. Staff were well trained, although some staff required refresher training to ensure their practice met current best practice guidelines. Staff felt supported by the registered manager. The registered manager had built effective relationships with external health and social care organisations and people’s health was regularly monitored. The environment had been adapted to ensure people were able to lead fulfilling lives. However, more directional signage was needed to support people with independent movement around the home. 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, although some best interest decision documentation required more detail.

People felt staff were kind, caring and compassionate. Staff treated people with respect and dignity. People’s privacy was respected and staff spoke discreetly when discussing people’s personal care needs. People felt listened to and staff understood how to communicate effectively with people. People were encouraged to do things for themselves and access to an advocate was provided if they needed one.

Some improvements had been made to the care planning process since our last inspection. Many of the records we looked at were fully reflective of people’s current health needs. However, more work was still needed to ensure all care records were up to date. End of life care plans were in place, but some of these lacked detail. Prior to moving to the home assessments were conducted to ensure people’s needs could be met at the home. People felt there were sufficient activities at the home and they were able to follow their own interests. People’s care records were person centred and guidance was provided for staff on how each person would like to be cared for. People felt their personal preferences and choices were respected. People were cared for without discrimination and systems were in place to support people who had communication needs. People felt able to raise a concern with the registered manager but were unsure of the formal process for doing so.

A new registered manager was in place. They, with support of the senior management team had made improvements to the home since our last inspection. There were now clear quality assurance processes with staff given responsibility to assist the registered manager with identifying concerns and acting on them. A detailed action plan was in place to further assist the registered manager with making longer term, sustainable improvements to the home. People felt able to give their views about the service. Staff felt valued and felt the registered manager had made a positive impact since joining the home. Staff were now held accountable for their actions.