Woodways

On this page

• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

Effective – this means we looked for evidence that people’s care, treatment and support achieved good outcomes and promoted a good quality of life, based on best available evidence.

At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has changed to outstanding. This meant people’s outcomes were consistently better than expected compared to similar services. People’s feedback described it as exceptional and distinctive.

This service scored 88 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The provider always made sure people’s care and treatment was effective by thoroughly assessing and reviewing their health, care, wellbeing and communication needs with them. Relatives and people told us they were involved in formulating their care plans and were kept informed of any changes. A relative said, “Staff keep me informed all the time. The manager e-mails and rings me. I can approach them if there is a problem and they inform me of all appointments.” Care plans were extremely person centred and included people's wishes, goals and aspirations and individualised needs. This included people's communication needs, sexuality and relationships. Some people had been supported to obtain pets; 1 person proudly showed us their pet hamster. Staff also brought in animals, records showed a person had commented a staff members dogs cheered them up when they were feeling low.

The provider had a strong proactive and positive culture of safety, based on openness and complete honesty. Staff actively listened to concerns about safety and thoroughly investigated and reported safety events. Lessons were always learnt to continually identify and embed good practice. Accidents and incidents were effectively recorded and monitored, to learn lessons and mitigate risks posed to people. Accidents were monitored through a health and safety committee, and the management team reviewed accidents and incidents, including any actions which were required. Monitoring was in place, to enable people to receive the least restrictive support possible. For example, 1 person recently had some environmental safety restrictions removed. This had enabled them to maintain their independence, where they had previously been restricted. The provider had a proactive approach to risk management, which balanced risk and opportunity. Incidents were discussed in team meetings and daily handovers. Where people had incidents of distress, the provider had produced example incident forms, for staff to follow as guidance, to ensure staff understood the level of detail required in these records. Staff were involved in debriefing sessions following behavioural incidents, to reflect upon what went well, what could be done better and if any changes were needed to the staff’s approach.

The provider always worked well across teams and services to support people. They shared thorough assessments of people’s needs when they moved between different services, so people only needed to tell their story once. Staff told us morale within the team was very good and they worked extremely well together as a team, to meet people's needs. A staff member said, “We are led by people who live here, people do what they want everyday.” Partners told us the service worked well with them and records evidenced people received input from external professionals, such as speech and language therapist's, psychologists and ophthalmologists. One person had had a reduction in their epileptic seizures as staff had worked closely with epilepsy nurses and neurologists. The management team told us how this had positively impacted this person, it had enabled them to access the community more, live a better quality of life and improved their health and well being. People had hospital passports in place, which shared key information with hospital staff, should they require hospital treatment.

The provider always supported people to manage their health and wellbeing to fully maximise their independence, choice and control. Staff supported people to live healthier lives and where possible, reduce their future needs for care and support. People had health action plans in place and received an annual health check. Staff worked closely with the local GP practice and a Dr completed a visit to the service once a month, ensuring people received consistent, preventative healthcare tailored to their needs. People were encouraged to exercise, a recent competition had taken place, which involved people completing a 3-park challenge, attending local parks. People were supported to attend the local gym and in-house movement classes. A person told us, ““I like it here. It's fun and staff treat me good. I need some prompting from the staff otherwise I would stay in bed all day. I go to slimming world. The doctor referred me. I shop around for my slimming world menu and sometimes do the cooking. I have regular meetings, and I can say what I want.” This demonstrated how the provider’s support helped the person build motivation, confidence, and skills to take control of their own health and daily life.

The provider monitored all people’s care and treatment to continuously improve it. They ensured that outcomes were positive and consistent, and that they fully met both clinical expectations and the expectations of people themselves. People were supported to achieve outcomes which were meaningful to them. People's goals and aspirations were explored and staff supported people to achieve them, to ensure people achieved outcomes which enhanced their independence, confidence and quality of life. For example, 1 person was supported to attend church, which was important to them. Another person who had a long standing fear of water, had been supported to learn how to swim and another person was supported to build their confidence and attend a specialised gym group, to enable them to feel comfortable attending the gym. People's goals were monitored and discussed through regular reviews with their key workers, progress was celebrated, and new aspirations explored. A person said, “I am happy here. I get good support, 2:1 staff. I feel safe. I can go out when I want and I have an activity plan. I get good support to manage household chores and do the food shopping. I try to eat healthy. We have meetings and I can voice my opinion. I like living here.” His feedback reflected how people were actively involved in shaping their care and how the provider promoted independence, wellbeing, and inclusion as part of everyday life.

The provider always carefully explained to people what their rights around consent were, made sure they fully understood them and always fully respected these when delivering person-centred care and treatment. Where people lacked capacity to make certain decisions, appropriate assessments and authorisations were in place. People's capacity was assessed for various elements of their support and treatment, such as for the use of CCTV in communal areas of the service, personal care and managing finances. Staff were trained in the principles of the Mental Capacity Act and understood their responsibilities to gain consent from people. Staff told us the service was led around the people who lived there, and they gained people's views and wishes before providing support. A staff member said, “I do a plan of activities every week with each person. I have to take into account they may change their mind and am prepared to change plans on the day. People come to me for support, and I reassure them, build their confidence and try to solve their problems.”