Archived: St Mary's Residential Care Home

St Mary's Residential Care Home is registered to provide accommodation and personal care for up to 25 people. At the time of our inspection, 24 people were living at the home. St Mary's Residential Care Home is owned by The Institute of Our Lady of Mercy, a congregation of religious women 'Sisters' from the catholic denomination. The home accepts people from all denominations or no faith.

People’s experience of using this service:

People consistently told us they were treated with kindness, compassion and described St Mary's as a lovely peaceful place to live.

People received exceptionally personalised care that truly valued them as individuals. Staff continually looked for new ways to enhance people's lives and understood what was expected of them; they were motivated, hardworking and enthusiastic.

Staff had a detailed knowledge of people's histories, their likes, dislikes and how they wished to be supported. This information was used to support people in a way that valued them as unique individuals and respected them for who they were. Staff went to exceptional lengths to ensure people had access to a wide range of activities that met their individual needs.

The provider's values were embedded into the home, staff and culture. The registered manager and staff were passionate and committed to providing a service where people were truly listened to and received personalised care and support.

People were protected from potential abuse by staff who had received training and were confident in raising concerns. There was a thorough recruitment process in place that checked potential staff were safe to work with people who may be vulnerable.

Risks had been appropriately assessed and staff had been provided with information on how to support people safely.

People had confidence in the staff who supported them and felt safe in their care. Staff were well trained and skilled at supporting people to lead independent, active and fulfilling lives. People's care plans were detailed and accurate, ensuring staff consistently knew how to support people.

People, staff and healthcare professionals told us the home was well led. Staff understood what was expected of them and were motivated to provide and maintain high standards of personalised care which treated people with dignity and respect.

The provider had exceptionally strong and effective governance systems in place. The management team continued to carry out a regular programme of audits to assess the safety and quality of the service and identify issues. The strong leadership put people first and set high expectations for staff. Staff were positive about the management of the home and felt valued and respected. This had a significant and positive impact on the quality of care and support of people living at St Marys.

St Mary’s met the characteristics of Outstanding in Caring, Responsive and Well Led.

Rating at last inspection: St Mary's Residential Care Home was previously rated as ‘Good.’ The report was published on the 2 November 2016.

Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection that was scheduled to take place in line with Care Quality Commission scheduling guidelines for adult social care services.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor the home through the information we receive until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme.

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

St Mary’s Residential Care Home is owned by The Institute of Our Lady of Mercy, a congregation of religious women ‘Sisters’ from the catholic denomination founded in Dublin, Ireland in 1831. Their current mission statement describes how their services are built on ‘an ethos of compassion, empowerment, inclusiveness, justice and respect for human dignity’. St Mary’s Residential Care Home is registered to provide accommodation and personal care to 25 people. At the time of our inspection there were 22 older people living at the home who were able to tell us their views on the care they received. St Mary’s Residential Care Home offers support to people from all religious faiths and those who have none. The home also offered respite to people however all people were permanent residents at the time of our inspection.

A registered manager was in post and had been registered with the Commission in September 2015. They were present throughout the inspection. 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.

The home is a detached property situated in a quiet residential area of Worthing, West Sussex. Local shops and other amenities can be easily accessed and it is in close proximity to Worthing seafront. All of the bedrooms offer single occupancy and all have en-suites facilities. In addition, communal toilets and bathrooms are available throughout the home. The home was inviting and maintained to a high standard, corridors have been adapted to meet the needs of people living in the home including people who use walking aids or a wheelchair.

A reception area, which was clearly marked, is in the main foyer which allowed visitors to be easily directed, by staff, to where they needed to be. The home offered a relaxed and friendly environment. Communal areas included a ‘coffee lounge’, a conservatory lounge area, an activities/ meeting room and a spacious dining room. Choices of additional seating were provided around the home to offer people options of where they would like to spend their day. An attractive chapel fitted with stained glass windows is situated towards the rear of the building and is used daily at 10am to hold a service which most residents attend. The service was also attended by members of the public mostly who were connected with a local church which is positioned a few roads away from the home. A large sized garden at the back of the home offers a ‘peaceful’ place for residents to relax and spend time with their families and friends.

People and their relatives told us the home provided a safe service and there was enough staff to meet people’s needs. Staff were able to speak about what action they would take if they had a concern or felt a person was at risk of abuse. Risks to people had been identified and assessed and information was provided to staff on how to care for people safely and mitigate any risks.

People’s medicines were managed safely and administered by staff who had received specific medicine training. The home followed safe staff recruitment practices and provided a thorough induction process to prepare new staff for their role.

Staff implemented the training they received by providing care that met the needs of the people they supported. Staff received regular supervisions and spoke positively about the guidance they received from the registered manager.

Staff understood the requirements under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and about people’s capacity to make decisions. They also understood the associated legislation under the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards and how to minimise restrictions to people’s freedom.

People could choose when, where and what they wanted to eat. Additional drinks and snacks were observed being offered in between meals and staff knew people’s preferences. Staff spoke kindly to people and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff knew people well and had a caring approach.

People received personalised care. Care plans reflected information relevant to each individual and their abilities including people’s communication and health needs. Staff were vigilant to changes in people’s health needs and their support was reviewed when required. If people required input from other health and social care professionals, this was arranged.

People were encouraged to pursue their own interests and accessed a range of activities within the home. All complaints were treated seriously and were overseen by the registered manager.

People were provided opportunities to give their views about the care they received from the service. Some people chose to use these opportunities to become more involved with their care and treatment. Relatives were also encouraged to give their feedback on how they viewed the service.

The registered manager demonstrated a ‘hands-on’ approach and knew people well. They had implemented a range of quality audit processes to measure the overall quality of the service provided to people and to make improvements.

The people we spoke with said that they were supported to retain their independence and consulted about their care and treatment. One person who had been living in the care home for many years said "there is not a single disagreeable member of staff here." This person also said "I hardly ever press the alarm because they anticipate my needs before I do."

The atmosphere was relaxed and friendly and we could see that people’s human rights were respected. The care home smelt fresh and clean and we were able to observe people talking to each other whilst they had their lunch in a bright and airy dining room. We found that people’s diversity, values and human rights were respected and for many of the people living in the home the on-site chapel was important.

We spoke with six members of staff who were appropriately trained and providing high quality care. One member of staff said that "I would happily have my parents here" and it feels "more like a hotel than a care home".

People who used the service were very positive about the care they receive. Each person commented that they were treated with respect and that they could exercise individual choices in their care and treatment. One person said "Everybody here is extremely committed to caring for you."

We observed that the staff were respectful and caring and demonstrated an understanding of individual needs in the planning of care and treatment. A person told us "I couldn't be more comfortable or better fed - my needs are met."

People we spoke with told us that they felt safe at the home and that there were enough staff to meet their needs. One person told us "There is always someone here checking you are safe."

People we spoke with told us that the manager and staff were "good" and that they could talk to them about any suggestions or concerns. We saw that people were involved in regular meetings about the home and services provided and that written information was circulated about activities and changes.

We saw that there was a planned programme of activities which included time set aside for individual requests. One person told us that they had "a lovely christmas; with people coming in to the home and outings to concerts and a pantomime."