• Care Home
  • Care home

Archived: West Lodge Residential Care Home

32 Palmerston Road, Buckhurst Hill, Essex, IG9 5LW (020) 8504 4542

Provided and run by:
Dr S Seyan and Mr J Kotecha

All Inspections

4 October 2013

During a routine inspection

During our inspection of West Lodge Residential Care Home on 4 October 2013, people told us they had been involved in decisions taken about their care and support. One person said, 'I do feel in control. They let us decide what to do and how to spend our days.'

We saw that staff treated people with respect and kindness while delivering appropriate levels of care and support. We also saw that care was delivered in a way that met people's individual needs and welfare requirements. One person said, 'I am happy here. I am well looked after. It's very friendly and homely.'

The premises were safe, suitable and fit for purpose. Adequate emergency procedures were in place and the safety equipment we saw had been regularly checked and well maintained.

We looked at records which showed that suitable arrangements had been put in place to ensure staff had been appropriately supported to perform their roles. One member of staff told us, 'I am very well supported'.I have regular supervisions [performance reviews] with my supervisors.'

A complaints policy and procedure had been put in place and we saw evidence that people's comments, feedback and suggestions had been regularly sought.

However, some of the care records we looked at had not been reviewed in line with the provider's own procedures and contained information that was both inaccurate and out of date.

13 February 2013

During an inspection looking at part of the service

During inspections carried out on 24 September 2012 and 11 December 2012 we found that the provider was not compliant with this outcome. The level of activities that were provided were judged to be insufficient to keep people who lived at the home stimulated and individual risk assessments were not up to date. We told the provider that we required them to become compliant with this outcome by 31 January 2013. On 13 February 2013 we carried out a further inspection to check that the provider had complied with our requirements. We found that improvements had been made to both the level of activities provided and the completion of risk assessments within people's care plans. People's needs were assessed and care and treatment was planned and delivered in line with their individual care plan.

11 December 2012

During an inspection looking at part of the service

We spoke with five people who lived at the home and one relative during our inspection on 11 December 2012. We asked about the activities that were available and one person said, "We get bits and pieces to do when we are all together. We make our own laughs." Another told us, "There are no activities at all. My main activity is walking about."

We spoke to the activity co-ordinator who told us that they worked from 10.00 am until 2.00 pm from Monday to Thursday. Activities took place between 10.00 am and 11.45 am as lunch was served at 12 noon on a daily basis. Activities resumed after lunch. We saw children from a local school singing carols for the people who lived at the home in the lounge in the morning and the activity co-ordinator and a care worker painting and writing Christmas cards with three people after lunch on the day of our visit. We were told that there were special projects that had been undertaken with people, including Halloween, a war project and there was currently a Christmas project underway. We saw that participation in these had been recorded in the daily activity logs kept within the care plans.

Of the five care plans that we looked at on 11 December 2012 three had appropriate up to date risk assessments

14 September 2012

During a routine inspection

We spoke with two people who used the service and one relative of a person who used the service.

People said that they felt safe living at the service and that staff were, 'Lovely and caring.' They told us that staff were respectful and that they were, 'Very well looked after.'

People said that they felt involved in their care and that staff treated them as they would like to be treated. However, one relative said, "There is a strong routine: get up at between 8.00am and 8.30am, have a bath every Tuesday. Drinks are at set times but they will get you one if you are thirsty." A person who used the service said, "Getting up time is 8.00am." Another person said, "I don't get given cornflakes when I want them. I get given porridge."

We were unable to communicate verbally with all of the people who used the service to gather information as a result of their limited verbal communication or poor cognitive ability. We spent time directly observing care or listening to everyday interactions to help us to determine what it was like for people living there. We saw sensitive interactions during the lunchtime, demonstrating that people were treated with consideration and respect.

We asked people if they thought there was enough to do at the service. One person said that they liked listening to people singing at the service, whereas the other two people we spoke with said that there wasn't much to do. One of these people said they were, 'Bored stiff.'