Archived: Kingsley Nursing Home

Updated 1 April 2021

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of CQC's response to the coronavirus pandemic we are looking at the preparedness of care homes in relation to infection prevention and control. This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection control and prevention measures the provider has in place.

This inspection took place on 12 March 2021 and was announced.

Updated 1 April 2021

An unannounced comprehensive inspection took place of Kingsley Nursing Home 7 & 8 February 2018.

We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service in January 2017 when a breach of legal requirement was found. We found a breach in regulation regarding the service not having suitable systems and processes in place to ensure the environment and equipment was safe and used safely. We undertook a focused inspection on 12 April 2017 to check that they had they now met legal requirements. On the inspection of 12 April 2017 we found improvements had been made and the service was now meeting requirements. While improvements had been made around monitoring the home's environment we had not revised the rating for this key question. To improve the rating too 'Good' would require a long term track record of consistent good practice. We reviewed our rating for ‘well led' at this inspection and the rating was changed to ‘Good’. The overall rating for this service is now ‘Good’.

Kingsley Nursing Home is a 'care home'. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Kingsley Nursing Home is a care home in the Birkdale area of Southport. The service offers accommodation, support and nursing care for up to 25 older people. The nursing home is accommodated across two Victorian houses that are connected through an internal corridor. Car parking is available at the front of the building and there is a garden to the rear of the building.

There was a registered manager in post at the time of our inspection. 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 legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People told us they felt safe living at the care home and that they received a good standard of care from a kind, approachable and caring staff team.

Staff were aware of what constituted abuse and how to respond to an actual or alleged incident. Policies and procedures were in place to protect people from abuse.

Staff we spoke with were able to describe how they protected people’s dignity and right to choose how they wanted their care delivered. Our observations showed staff provided care in accordance with assessment need. Staff were considerate and polite when supporting people.

Ways in which people communicated were recorded to help make their needs known. With regards to the people we discussed, staff had a good knowledge of how people communicated their needs and how they wished to be supported.

At the time of our inspection there were sufficient numbers of skilled and experienced staff to support people. The provider has agreed to provide extra care hours each day for staff to support people with social activities. The activities organiser had left recently and the provider had advertised this position.

Staff recruitment procedures were robust to ensure staff could work with vulnerable people.

We found the home was operating in accordance with the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 [MCA]. Staff sought consent from people before providing support.

The registered manager had made appropriate referrals to the local authority applying for authorisations to support people who may be deprived of their liberty under the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards [DoLS]. DoLS is part of the MCA and aims to ensure people in care homes and hospitals are looked after in a way that does not inappropriately restrict their freedom unless it is in their best interests.

Risks to people’s health, safety and welfare were assessed and measures were put in place to reduce risk, whilst being mindful of people’s rights to independence. Risk assessments were linked to people’s plan of care.

Staff received end of life training and people’s wishes were recorded regarding the provision for end of life care.

Risk assessments, service contracts and safety checks of services, such as the gas and electric supply, and various equipment were in place. This helped to ensure the environment was safe and well maintained. A plan of refurbishment and decoration was on-going.

People had a plan of care which was based on individual need and drawn in consultation with the person concerned, their relative and/or health professional. People’s consent to their plan of care was sought and people and their relatives were involved with care reviews.

People had access to external health and social care professionals to help maintain their health and wellbeing. People told us they could see their doctor when they wanted and staff were prompt in making appointments for them.

Staff received training and support to help ensure they had the knowledge and skills required to meet people’s needs effectively and safely.

People told us they enjoyed the meals and there was plenty of choice. People’s dietary needs were assessed and dietetic advice sought appropriately.

Medicines were administered and managed safely. People had a plan of care for their medicines and this included the use of as needed [PRN] medication.

People had access to complaints’ procedure. There were no recent complaints recorded. People and their relatives felt confident in raising concerns with the registered manager.

We found the home to be clean with good adherence to the control of infection

Opportunities were available for people and relatives to provide feedback regarding the service through meetings and satisfaction questionnaires. Changes were made following feedback to help improve the service.

People and their relatives spoke positively about the overall management of the service. Quality assurance systems and processes were in place, including audits of the service. These helped to monitor standards and drive forward improvements.

Staff and the registered manager clearly understood their roles and responsibilities to provide a well-managed service.

The registered manager had notified the Care Quality Commission [CQC] of events and incidents that occurred at the service in accordance with our statutory requirements. This meant that CQC were able to monitor risks and information regarding the service.