Updated 22 February 2020
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 Care Act 2014.
Inspection team
The inspection was carried out by one inspector and an Expert by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.
Service and service type
Willow Lodge Care Home is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.
The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission on the first day of our inspection. 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. The manager had left the service prior to our inspection and had their registration cancelled on the second day of our inspection. The provider had appointed a new manager who was in the process of applying to become the registered manager.
Notice of inspection
This inspection was unannounced.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. This included information about concerns and incidents the provider must notify us about. We sought feedback from the local authority professionals who work with the service 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 or have made since the last inspection. This information helps support our inspections.
We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with eight people who use the service and two relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 13 members of staff including the regional manager, manager, deputy manager, senior care workers, care workers, catering and housekeeping staff. We received feedback from four health and social care professionals who worked alongside the service. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us.
We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records, risk assessments and medication records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. We reviewed a variety of records related to the management and quality assurance of the service.
After the inspection
We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data.