Woodrowe House

Updated 20 July 2022

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

The inspection was undertaken by one inspector over two days.

Service and service type

Woodrowe House is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Woodrowe House is a care home without nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced on the first day and announced on the second day.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service. We sought feedback from commissioners and Healthwatch. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We communicated with six people who used the service and three relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 12 members of staff including the registered manager, nominated individual, service manager, occupational therapists and care staff. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider. We also spoke with a healthcare professional and visiting paid relevant persons representative (PRPR). A PRPR visits people who are subject to Deprivation of Liberties Safeguards (DoLs) which restrict their lives in some way, and do not have family and friends to ensure these are being used lawfully.

Some people were not able to fully communicate all their experiences of receiving care verbally but used different ways of communicating such as gestures and their body language. During the inspection, we spent time observing staff interactions with people.

We reviewed a range of records. This included five people’s care records and eight people’s medicines records. We looked at three staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at a variety of compliance records, not limited to, but including training data, policies, newsletters, survey outcomes and meeting records. We reviewed feedback we had received online from a relative and written feedback from a GP. We also spoke with professionals from three commissioning organisations.

Updated 20 July 2022

About the service

Woodrowe House is a residential care home providing accommodation and personal care. It is registered to support up to 27 people with a physical disability, sensory impairment or mental health needs. The

service specialised in providing rehabilitation for people with acquired brain injuries. At the time of our inspection there were 20 people using the service.

The living accommodation was provided over two floors accessed via stairs or a lift. Bedrooms were of a large size with an adjoining en suite shower room. There were several quiet communal areas people could access both within Woodrow House and in the grounds. People had access to a sensory room, spa bath, activity area, gym, games area and hairdressing salon.

The service employed occupational therapists and physiotherapists to support people to regain their skills and to promote independence. Therapy was provided on the third floor of the service.

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

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.

Quality assurance systems and processes to monitor the quality and safety of the service required improvements.

Staff had the relevant skills and competence to meet people’s needs. However, improvements were needed to the providers mandatory training programme. These were made following the inspection and needed to be embedded in practice and sustained. Where staff needed to undertake specific tasks such as giving injections, they had been trained and competency assessed by the appropriate healthcare professional. Staff received an in-depth introduction to people’s care needs and did not support people with these until they had been assessed as competent to do so.

People were supported by staff that knew how to keep them safe from harm or abuse. People received medicines on time and were supported by staff that had been safely recruited. Staff had a good knowledge of risks associated with providing people’s care and received training relevant to people’s needs. There were enough staff employed to meet people’s care needs.

The registered managers were passionate about providing person-centred care. They knew people well as they were involved in care delivery. The service regularly sought feedback from people about their care experience to ensure any issues were promptly addressed.

The service supported people to express their views, preferences, wishes and choices. Staff supported people to engage in their hobbies and interests, while promoting people’s independence. The service was flexible and responsive to people’s individual needs and preferences. People and relatives knew how to raise a concern or make a complaint and felt confident this would be addressed.

People and relatives told us the care received was kind, caring and compassionate. Staff we spoke with were committed to ensuring people’s health, emotional and social wellbeing needs were fully met. People and staff had built positive relationships together and enjoyed spending time in each other’s company. People’s diversity was respected and embraced. Staff were open to people of all faiths and beliefs and people’s privacy and dignity was respected.

People were supported to eat and drink enough and changes to their health were promptly identified. They were supported to access timely medical intervention.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 04 July 2019 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection of an unrated service.

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

We found improvements were needed with the providers quality assurance systems and processes, please see the well-led section of this report. We made a recommendation the provider review their mandatory training programme and quality assurance systems and processes.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.