St Mary's Convent and Nursing Home

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

Caring – this means we looked for evidence that the provider involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.

At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

This service scored 80 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

Staff interacted with people in a kind, caring and respectful manner. People told us they felt the staff were kind and caring and treated them with respect with 1 person commenting, “They are the loveliest people I have met.” People confirmed staff explained what care they were going to provide and obtained their consent. People also said they felt staff treated them with respect. Their comments included, “They will always say what they will do before they do it” and “I have never felt more respected in a setting.”

Relatives confirmed they felt the staff treated their family members in a kind and caring way. Their comments included, “These workers are the best in the business” and “The most compassionate staff I have ever come across.” Relatives told us staff respected people’s privacy with 1 telling us, “I’ve seen them ask others if they can enter their rooms before walking in.”

Staff understood how to ensure people were treated with respect and their dignity was maintained. We saw that people’s bedroom doors were closed when they were receiving support with personal care. Bedroom doors were closed when the person was not in their room to maintain their privacy. Staff completed training on dignity and respect, and this was supported as part of supervision and team meetings. We observed staff interacting with people in a kind and caring way and they were listening to what people were saying.

People were treated as individuals. Though the care home was predominantly Anglican, people from other faith groups or no faith were welcomed to become part of the resident community. The registered manager told us if a person came from a different faith group the person would be consulted on how they would like to be supported to maintain links to their faith community. This would include supporting people to travel to their faith setting if that was important to them or arrange visits to the home. People were supported to attend religious services in the onsite chapel. Sisters from the religious order lived alongside people in the home and they supported them with pastoral care and friendship. People’s care plans and risk assessment provided information on their specific support needs and how they wanted their care provided. We saw staff were aware of people’s specific needs and they provided support to ensure these were met.

People were supported to be as independent as possible and provided with support when the person requested it or when needed. The registered manager told us the activities team worked alongside people and their relatives to identify things they wanted to do that maintained their independence, gave them purpose and meaning. These activities could occur both inside the home and in the community. People were supported to run their own activities which included a tai chi class other people living at the home could attend. Other activities included group crossword sessions, exercise-based activities such as indoor bowls and visits to flower and art shows which related to people’s interests. There were also visits from pets as therapy dogs which we saw people enjoyed and promoted conversations between people about the dogs.

During meals in the main dining room, people were encouraged to select their own salad from a trolley which was brought to the table to enable people with restricted mobility to make their choices. People were supported to serve their own vegetables from trays and condiments on their dining tables. The design of the home supported people to be as independent as possible by enabling them to use mobility aids including electric scooters to access all areas. People could choose to have their meals in a dining room or in their bedroom.

There was an area set up as a café which people could access to get a hot drink or snacks. People could use this area to meet with friends and family who were visiting, and staff were available to provide any additional support if required.

Care plans identified the level of support the person required and what they could do themselves. Where people could manage their own personal care or medicines, they were supported to do so. A staff member, “It was important to keep people safe but enable them to take appropriate risks sometimes to help them maintain their independence.” We saw staff supporting people to make choices about their care and activities.

People’s immediate needs were responded to by staff. We saw staff regularly checked with people to see if they were happy and if they needed anything. Where people used the call bells in their rooms staff responded to them quickly. The call bell system also indicated if a sensor mat had been activated. Staff discussed any changes in people’s health or support needs during the handover meetings. The staff worked with local healthcare professionals to ensure people’s health was monitored and action taken when needed. A healthcare professional explained that nurses worked closely with them and they reported any concerns they had as they knew people well. The healthcare professional also told us that the nurses had direct contact with them during working hours to arrange treatment and interventions in a timely manner. Care plans and risk assessments were updated to reflect any changes in the person’s health or care needs.

The provider supported staff in their roles. The registered manager explained the provider was committed to staff wellbeing and there was a low turnover of staff as there was a family atmosphere within the home. Staff could access a counselling service, the provider ensured staff had a work life balance and there were support groups where staff could get assistance. Staff told us they enjoyed working at the home with many of them being there for a long time. Staff felt supported by management with a staff member commenting, “The registered manager was supportive of staff.” The deputy manager explained they considered the management got the best out of staff by treating them well and ensuring they felt valued and well trained in their roles. The provider supported staff where English was not their first language by providing English language lessons.