Alexandra House - Leicester

Alexandra House is a care home providing accommodation for up to 17 older people, including people living with dementia. At the time of the inspection there were 15 people using the service.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

Prior to the inspection we received information that staff were working in the service whilst testing positive for COVID-19 and had not received support to self-isolate. We found no evidence to support these concerns. The provider had taken immediate action in response to a positive test for COVID-19 and staff were supported to self-isolate. We found people were protected from the risk of acquiring infections and the service was clean. Personal protective equipment was readily available to staff and all staff were following the latest guidance. People and staff were supported to undertake regular testing and robust visiting arrangements were in place to enable people to receive visitors and essential health care.

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was Requires Improvement (published 3 April 2019)

Why we inspected

We undertook this targeted inspection to follow up on specific concerns which we had received about the service. The inspection was prompted in response to concerns received about infection control risks. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.

CQC have introduced targeted inspections to follow up on Warning Notices or to check specific concerns. They do not look at an entire key question, only the part of the key question we are specifically concerned about. Targeted inspections do not change the rating from the previous inspection. This is because they do not assess all areas of a key question.

We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from these concerns.

Please see the safe section of this full report.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Alexandra House on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.

People’s experience of using this service:

People told us they felt safe. On inspection we found that people had not consistently received safe care. Safe food storage procedures were in place, but these were not always followed by staff. Personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEP's) had not been completed for all people and the quick reference emergency evacuation plan required some improvement to ensure people could be evacuated quickly in the unlikely event of an emergency. People’s medicines were administered by trained staff.

The adaptation of the service and the building could be developed further to better support people living with dementia. For example, dementia friendly signage was not used to support people with orientation. We have made a recommendation about creating a dementia friendly environment.

Person centred care and activity needed further development. People’s culture, religion and lifestyle choices needed to be considered in more detail. We have made a recommendation about engaging people in person centred activity.

Risk assessments were in place and reviewed regularly to protect and promote people’s safety. Staffing numbers were sufficient to keep people safe and recruitment procedures ensured that staff employed were suitable for the role.

Staff had a good understanding of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA). Records required further development to provide clear information on what decisions people could or couldn’t make for themselves to ensure they were being supported in the least restrictive way possible.

People received care from staff that were kind and caring. Privacy and dignity was protected and promoted. People had developed positive relationships with staff who knew them well.

The registered manager and provider were open friendly and approachable. They were well respected by the staff team who told us they were supportive. Quality monitoring processes had not always identified inconsistency in recording information. However, the registered manager was taking positive steps to improve the service and maintained oversight with their hands-on approach. They had recently joined networking groups and forums to share and gain knowledge to improve the service.

Rating at last inspection: Not yet rated

Why we inspected: This was a planned first comprehensive inspection.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor the service through the information we receive until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any information of concern is received, we may inspect sooner.