Bliss Care Home

Bliss Care Home is a care home providing personal and nursing care to up to 15 people. At the time of our inspection there were 15 people using the service. The home is split over 3 separate floors, people have their own rooms with some shared communal facilities.

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

People and their relatives gave us positive feedback on their experience of using the service. One person said, “There is always someone here when you need them, we are like one big family.”

Care and treatment were planned and delivered in a way that was intended to ensure people's safety and welfare. People were cared for safely by staff who had been recruited and employed after appropriate checks had been completed. Staff had received appropriate training. There were systems in place to minimise the risk of infection and to learn lessons from accidents and incidents. Medication was dispensed by staff who had received training to do so.

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.

The manager had systems in place to monitor the service, measure outcomes for people and make improvements where needed

Rating at last inspection.

The last rating for this service was good (published 29 December 2017).

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

Why we inspected

This inspection was carried following a safeguarding concern. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks. We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from this concern. This report only covers our findings in relation to the key questions Safe and Well-led. For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.

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.

Follow up

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

Bliss Care Home is a residential care home providing accommodation and personal care for people aged 65 and over, who may be living with dementia. The care home accommodates up to 16 people in one adapted building. At the time of our inspection there were seven people living at the service.

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

Arrangements were in place to routinely listen and learn from people’s experiences, concerns and complaints. The service had a consistent approach to safeguarding and matters were dealt with promptly and actions taken where necessary to make improvement. We found the provider's policy in relation to safeguarding processes needed further clarity, to reflect best practice, ensure staff were aware of escalation processes required, to share information and ensure people were safe from harm. We have made a recommendation about this.

The service was working closely with the local authority, Public Health England, the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) infection control team and the GP to ensure their infection prevention and control practices was safe and people’s needs were met. There was adequate access and take up of testing for staff and people using the service.

National guidance was being followed on the use of personal protective equipment (PPE). There was clear signage on instruction, direction and the correct use PPE and handwashing techniques. There was a plentiful supply of PPE and staff had received training in infection prevention and control.

At the time of our visit the service was at the end of an outbreak and not admitting any new people to the service. However, the registered manager told us national admissions guidance would be followed when they started to admit people again. The service had a planning structure in place which included people only being admitted based on a negative Covid-19 test result and following admission isolation within their bedroom for the first 14 days.

Local restrictions on visiting were in place at the time of the inspection and the home was closed to family and friends with the exception of those visiting loved ones at the end stage of their life. In these cases, safe measures had been put in place to facilitate agreed pre-booked visits.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 28 December 2017).

Why we inspected

We undertook this targeted inspection to follow up on concerns we had received about the service. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those concerns. We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk from these concerns. The overall rating for the service has not changed following this targeted inspection and remains good.

CQC have introduced targeted inspections to follow up on a Warning Notice or other specific concerns. They do not look at an entire key question, only the part of the key question we are specifically concerned about. Targeted inspections do not change the rating from the previous inspection. This is because they do not assess all areas of a key question.

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 coronavirus and other infection outbreaks effectively.

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.

Bliss Care Home provides accommodation and personal care without nursing for up to 15 persons who may be living with dementia. At the time of our inspection 11 people were living at the service.

The service has a registered manager. ‘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 a legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

At the last inspection, the service was rated Good, at this inspection, we found the service remained Good overall.

The service was safe. The provider’s recruitment processes ensured that appropriate checks were carried out before staff commenced employment. There were sufficient numbers of staff on duty to meet the needs of people and keep them safe from potential harm or abuse. People’s health and wellbeing needs were assessed and reviewed to minimise risk to health. The service had a good management and monitoring structure in place for medication.

The service was effective. People were cared for and supported by staff who had received training to meet their needs. The staff had a good understanding of their responsibilities in relation to the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. People were supported to eat and drink enough as to ensure they maintained a balanced diet and referrals to health and social care services was made when required.

The service was caring. Staff cared for people in an empathetic and kind manner. Staff had a good understanding of people’s preferences. Staff always worked to promote people’s independence through encouraging and supporting people in their individual abilities.

The service was responsive. People and their relatives were involved in the planning and review of their care. Care plans were reviewed on a regular basis and were updated if changes to people’s needs was found. People were supported to follow their interests and participate in social activities. The service had a robust complaints procedure in place.

The service was well led. The service had systems in place to monitor and provide good care and these were reviewed on a regular basis. The provider told us that current systems and processes were being updated to ensure improvements to the service would be made in a timely way.