Background to this inspection
Updated
21 September 2016
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, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
This inspection took place on 31 August 2016 and was unannounced. The inspection was completed by two inspectors and an expert by experience. An expert by experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.
Before the inspection, the provider completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and what improvements they plan to make. We used this information to help plan our inspection.
We also looked at notifications which we held about the organisation. Notifications are events which have happened in the service that the provider is required to tell us about, and information that had been sent to us by other agencies.
During our inspection we observed care in the home and spoke with the registered manager and four members of care staff. We also spoke with the cook, domestic, administrator and activities coordinator. We spoke with five people who used the service and one relative. We also looked at four people’s care plans, three staff files and records of staff training, audits and medicines.
Updated
21 September 2016
This inspection took place on 31 August 2016 and was unannounced. Heatherlea House provides care for older people who have mental and physical health needs including people living with dementia. It provides accommodation for up to 17 people who require personal and nursing care. At the time of our inspection there were 15 people living at the home.
There was a registered manager in post. 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.
On the day of our inspection staff interacted well with people and people were cared for safely. People and their relatives told us that they felt safe and well cared for. Staff knew how to keep people safe. The provider had systems and processes in place to keep people safe. Medicines were administered and stored safely.
We saw that staff obtained people’s consent before providing care to them. The provider acted in accordance with the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). The MCA provides the legal framework to assess people’s capacity to make certain decisions, at a certain time. If the location is a care home the Care Quality Commission is required by law to monitor the operation of the DoLS, and to report on what we find.
We found that people’s health care needs were assessed and care planned and delivered to meet those needs. People had access to healthcare professionals such as the district nurse and GP and also specialist professionals. People had their nutritional needs assessed and were supported with their meals to keep them healthy. People had access to drinks and snacks during the day and had choices at mealtimes. Where people had special dietary requirements we saw that these were provided for.
There were sufficient staff to meet people’s needs and staff responded in a timely and appropriate manner to people. Staff were kind and sensitive to people when they were providing support and people had their privacy and dignity considered. Staff had a good understanding of people’s needs and were provided with training on a variety of subjects to ensure that they had the skills to meet people’s needs. The provider had a training plan in place and staff had received regular supervision. People were encouraged to enjoy a range of hobbies and social activities. They were supported to maintain relationships that were important to them.
Staff felt able to raise concerns and issues with management. Relatives were aware of the process for raising concerns and were confident that they would be listened to. Regular audits were carried out and action plans put in place to address any issues which were identified. Accidents and incidents were recorded. The provider had informed us of notifications as required by law. Notifications are events which have happened in the service that the provider is required to tell us about.