12th August 2014
During a routine inspection
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2012 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 and to pilot a new inspection process being introduced by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), which looks at the overall quality of the service.
The inspection was unannounced.
Caxton Lodge is a small care home in a residential area of Blackpool, between Bispham and Norcross. The home provides personal care for people who live with varying degrees of dementia and can accommodate a maximum of nine people. At the time of our inspection there were nine people using the service. The home has two lounges and a dining room. All bedrooms have hand wash basins. There are six single bedrooms on the first floor and three bedrooms on the ground floor. There is a passenger lift between the two floors.
There was a registered manager in place at the home. A registered manager is a person who has registered with CQC to manage the service and has the legal responsibility for meeting the requirements of the law; as does the provider.
Infection control procedures were in place but not always followed. Standards of cleanliness and hygiene were variable. The infection control procedures did not reflect current legislation and best practice guidance. This meant that people who used the service were not fully protected against the risks of cross infection.
The arrangements for monitoring quality and assessing risks were inconsistent and sometimes ineffective. We identified some issues, for example, environmental risks, that had not been assessed, and as such, there was no plan in place to manage them. This meant that the health and safety of people who used the service could be compromised.
We found several breaches of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2010. You can see what action we told the provider to take at the back of the full version of this report.
Throughout the inspection we consulted a number of people who used the service, their relatives and some community professionals. We received good feedback from people and all those we spoke with expressed general satisfaction with the service provided at Caxton Lodge.
People we spoke with including people who used the service, their relatives and community professionals, were able to tell us about positive outcomes experienced by people who used the service due to the support they received.
People felt that staff understood their needs and provided care in line with their personal preferences. Care workers were aware of people’s individual care plans and the support they required.
There were processes in place to ensure that people who used the service were protected from abuse. Staff received training in this area and demonstrated good understanding of safeguarding procedures.
The rights of people who did not have capacity to make certain decisions about their care were protected. Where decisions were made in a person’s best interests, the registered manager ensured the person’s representatives and other professionals involved in their care were involved.
Staffing levels were calculated in line with the needs of people who used the service. People felt that there were enough staff on duty at any one time, to meet their or their loved one’s needs and that staff were competent to carry out their roles.
People who used the service, their relatives and staff felt able to raise concerns. People felt confident that any concerns they did raise would be dealt with properly.