03 December 2014
During a routine inspection
This inspection took place on 03 December 2014 and was unannounced.
St Edmunds Residential Home is a care service that provides accommodation, care and support for up to 39 older people, some of who are living with dementia. At the time of the inspection, there were 37 people living at St Edmunds Residential Home. The provider, St Edmunds Limited, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Eastern Healthcare Limited.
There has not been a registered manager at the service for over six months. However, a manager is in post and they had taken action to apply to be the registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
The new manager and provider were taking action to make certain that people living at the service were well cared for and the records and systems used in the home were complete and up to date.
Adequate staffing levels were in place to meet people’s needs and staff absence was covered. Staff used a friendly and thoughtful approach when talking with and assisting people and treated them with respect. People were able to raise their concerns, felt safe at the home and received their care from compassionate and competent staff.
Staff had completed training and knew how to make sure that people were safe and protected from abuse. Increased training had been provided and planned for staff to make sure they had suitable opportunities to develop the skills and knowledge they needed to carry out their role. Recruitment checks were being carried out to make certain they were complete and that the staff employed continued to be suitable to care for older people.
People had their needs met and they and their relative were consulted and involved in discussions about the care and support they wished to receive. Reviews of the care plans held for each person were taking place to ensure they contained accurate information and were personalised. Each person was encouraged to maintain their independence and had access to healthcare professionals when they became unwell. Arrangements were being made to increase the range of activities provided for people. Medicines were available for people to take when they needed them, were stored securely and had been accurately recorded when administered.
The new management team had taken action to introduce themselves to people living, visiting and working at the home. People’s concerns were listened to and were dealt with and resolved as quickly as possible. People had been given increased opportunities to raise their concerns and their suggestions for improvements within the service had been listened to by the provider and manager. Plans were in place for regular meetings to be held to discuss the improvements needed and planned within the service.
Staff were involved in discussions when changes in care practice were needed. A new audit system was being introduced to monitor how well the home was being run and to check that people received the care and support they needed. Regular checks had started to be made on the way staff worked, the records held and the maintenance of the premises.
The policies and procedures currently in place were being reviewed and replaced with those used by the new provider. CQC monitors the operation of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards which applies to all care services. Plans were in place for staff to complete this training. People’s capacity to make decisions for themselves about their care was being assessed and the manager knew when to liaise with the supervisory body, about making an application, when a person was at risk of having their liberty restricted or deprived.