26 April 2022
During an inspection looking at part of the service
About the service
Alderwood L.L.A. Limited - Dybdale Crescent is a residential care home providing personal care for three people at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to four people within the main home and one person accessing respite care within the self-contained adjoining annex.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
Based on our review of key questions of Safe and Well-led. The service was able to demonstrate how they were meeting the underpinning principles of Right support, right care, right culture.
Right Support
Staff supported people to have choice, control and independence over their own lives. Staff supported people to develop strategies to manage emotional distress and anxiety, maximising safety so as to provide the best circumstances in which people could make decisions and experience an active and rewarding day.
Periods of anxiety or emotional distress were recorded, which included the action taken by staff to support people. The registered manager considered these as part of the review process of people’s needs.
People had been asked about their living environment and were in the process of choosing colour themes for their bedroom and communal areas.
Staff supported people to access health and social care support, which included a regular review of their prescribed medicines. Staff supported people with their medicines safely. Positive relationships had developed with local health care providers, who provided timely support, considering people’s emotional and sensory needs for planned appointments.
Right Care
People’s dignity and human rights were promoted, and people were encouraged to make day to day decisions about the activities and events they wished to participate in. However, phrases used to describe periods of emotional distress or anxiety were not always respectful.
Staff understood how to protect people from poor care and abuse. The service worked with other agencies to do so. Staff had training on how to recognise and report abuse and knew how to apply it. The service had enough appropriately skilled staff to meet people’s needs and keep them safe. Recruitment was ongoing to fill vacancies.
People could communicate with staff and understand information given to them as staff supported them consistently and understood their individual communication needs. People received care that supported their needs and aspirations and was focused on their quality of life.
Right culture
The provider sought the views of family members and staff through the sending out of surveys. However, most family members and staff had not received an outcome of the consultation process from the provider, or information as to planned actions in response to feedback. Surveys had recently been developed to seek people’s views using pictorial cards.
The provider’s policies which had recently been introduced were not fully implemented, they referred to the visions and values of the provider in creating a supportive, open and inclusive culture. Family members spoke of recent improvements in the culture of the service since the appointment of the registered manager. This had created a more open culture, with an emphasis on encouraging their relative’s to be involved in decisions about their care, and through staff’s positive and encouraging approach.
Family members spoke of their regular visits to see their relative at the home, which included outings to local parks or other local amenities, sometimes accompanied by staff. A family member told us. “The current cohort of staff is perfect; they provide person led care which is just right. There’s a proactive approach of getting people out and about.”
People appeared relaxed within their home and in the presence of staff. People were seen to be supported to choose activities of interest to them, which included day trips, visiting a local farm to help in the care of animals, trips to local parks and shops along with activities within the home, which included household chores, reading, puzzles, listening to music and watching television.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Why we inspected
The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about staff shortages and the high use of agency staff, and staff’s inability to meet people’s needs as staff did not have the skills they needed.
We undertook this inspection to assess that the service is applying the principles of Right support right care right culture.
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.