11 February 2020
During a routine inspection
Smyth House provides accommodation and personal care for up to 18 older people, some of whom were living with dementia. At the time of our visit 12 people were using the service.
What life is like for people using this service:
Risks in the environment had not been identified and acted on. For example, window restrictors were not in place and checks were not carried out to ensure safe water quality. Risk assessments had not been carried out for the staircases in the property. The temperature of the water coming from taps was too hot and posed the risk of scalding.
The service had not identified shortfalls we found and acted upon these, which meant people had been placed at the risk of potential harm. The management had not made themselves aware of Health and Safety regulations and ensured that the service was compliant with these.
Mental capacity assessments had not been carried out and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) applications had not been made where these would be appropriate.
Risk assessments were in place which set out the measures staff should take to reduce risks such as pressure ulcers, falls or malnutrition. Care planning contained sufficient information about the care people required so staff knew how to meet their needs.
Care records were personalised and contained sufficient information about people’s preferences, specific routines, their life history and interests. People were provided with individualised support to follow their particular hobbies and interests. People made positive comments about the activities.
Improvements were required to end of life care planning to meet best practice guidance such as that provided by the Gold Standards Framework.
People who live at Smyth House have their needs met by sufficient numbers of suitably trained staff.
Staff and the management team were kind, caring and compassionate. People told us that the staff were kind to them and this confirmed our observations.
People were offered a choice of meals which met their nutritional requirements. The risk of people becoming malnourished was identified, monitored and managed.
People and their representatives were involved in the planning of their care and given opportunities to feedback on the service they received. People’s views were acted upon.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection (and update):
At the last inspection the service was rated Good. (Report published 7 July 2017)
At this inspection we found there were shortfalls that had not been identified and addressed. This included breaches of regulations 11, 12 and 17 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014.
Why we inspected:
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
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.