Merwood Rest Home

Updated 9 April 2021

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 coronavirus pandemic we are looking at the preparedness of care homes in relation to infection prevention and control. This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection control and prevention measures the provider has in place.

This inspection took place on 11 March 2021 and was announced.

Updated 9 April 2021

Merwood Rest Home is a residential care home for 16 older people. The home has an accessible garden area, a range of communal rooms and a dining area. The home has rooms on two floors which are accessible via stairs or a lift. At the time of the inspection visit there were 15 people who lived at the home.

There was a registered manager in place. 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.

At the last inspection, the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.

People we spoke with told us they felt safe living at the home. We found people were protected from risks associated with their care because the registered provider had completed risk assessments.

People told us there were enough staff on duty and staff came quickly to any requests for support. We reviewed medicines administration and documentation and found this to be safe. We looked around the home and found it was clean, tidy and maintained.

People are supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff support them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service support this practice.

We found the home was pro-active in supporting people to have sufficient nutrition and hydration. One person told us, “The food is very nice. They come round with a menu every morning. It suits our tastes.”

We received consistent positive feedback about care provided at Merwood Rest Home from people who lived at the home and their relatives. Staff understood the needs of people they supported and it was apparent trusting relationships had been created.

We saw people engaging in activities positively with staff. During the morning of the inspection visit we observed people taking part in chair exercises.

We saw evidence of complaints and information was available to show how those complaints had been reviewed, investigated and responded to.

People who lived at the home and relatives told us the home was well led. The registered manager had clear visions around the registered activities and plans for improvement moving forward. They were receptive to feedback and keen to improve the home and worked with us in a positive manner and provided all the information we requested.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.