Prinsted Care Home

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

Caring – this means we looked for evidence that the provider involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.

At our last assessment we rated this key question outstanding. At this assessment the rating has changed to good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

This service scored 65 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The provider did not always treat people with kindness, empathy and compassion, or respect their privacy and dignity.

People were not always treated with dignity and respect. We observed the mealtime experience for some people did not consistently support their dignity. Consideration had not been given to seating arrangements for people who needed support with eating and drinking. This meant that some people were receiving this support in full view of others who were waiting for their meals. Some people did not receive the support they needed when they dropped food onto their clothing. This did not support people’s privacy and dignity. We have commented further on some people’s mealtime experience within the quality statement for Delivering evidence-based care and treatment in this report.

People and their relatives spoke highly of the staff. One person said, “They are kind and efficient.” Another person said, “I get on with the carers reasonably well, they have to work hard, they are certainly kind.” A third person said, “The staff here are not just carers, they are really good friends.” Staff had developed positive relationships with people and knew them well. Staff spoke about people with kindness and empathy, for example a staff member spoke about a person’s background and described how they admired their achievements. We observed some interactions between staff and people that were really kind, compassionate and engaging. A relative told us, “The staff are wonderful, we get on really well, all the staff know me.” Another relative described feeling welcomed by staff when they visited. They said, “They always greet me kindly whenever I pop in, and always with my name too.”

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

People told us staff understood their personal, cultural and religious needs. One person told us about their religious beliefs and said, “They (staff) are very considerate and understanding.”

Staff knew people well and supported them in the way they preferred and according to their needs. One staff member said, “We get time to spend with people and get to know them and about their families and background.” Another staff member said, “I can think of one person in particular who likes us to do things a certain way, so they are in control of their care.”

Care plans were well personalised and included details of people’s preferences.

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

People told us they were supported to have choice and control. One person said, “They (staff) always ask me what my likes and dislikes are.” Another person who needed support to move around told us how staff supported them when they wanted them to. They said, “They help me get into the chair, when I want to.” A relative described how staff supported people to remain independent and mobile. They told us, “The staff manage the risks well and do encourage them to walk whenever they can.”

Records showed people and their relatives were included as much as possible in planning their care and treatment. People’s choices and preferences were noted and staff demonstrated they knew people well. One staff member said, “We always let people make decisions where possible, and if they need a bit of help then we step in.”

Staff did not always respond to people’s needs in the moment or act to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

People told us that staff were not always responsive to their needs, for example when they rang their call bells. One person told us, “They work hard, but sometimes they are overstretched and sometimes, short staffed.” Another person said, “There are occasions when they are short staffed. They do answer the buzzer, but it really depends on how busy they are as to when they come.” A third person said, “There are times when the staff are under pressure, the summer holidays for example.”

Staff told us they were not always able to respond as quickly as they should to people’s needs. One staff member told us this was because the number of people who needed support from two staff in the morning had an impact on their ability to respond quickly.

During our visit we observed one person’s call bell rang for 20 minutes before staff were able to support them with their personal care needs. At lunchtime we noted how some people had to wait for their meals because staff were busy supporting other people. This meant some people were left sitting with nothing to occupy them until a staff member was available to support them. Staff were not always alert to people’s needs. For example, some people did not receive the support they needed to eat and drink. One person was heard calling out to staff, staff were occupied with other people and did not respond to the person.

We asked the registered manager to review the deployment of staff on the first floor during the morning and at lunchtime.

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

All the staff we spoke with told us they felt well supported in their roles. Records showed staff were attending regular supervision meetings. They described how this provided opportunities to discuss their work, feedback any concerns and to consider their own well-being. One staff member explained how they had been new to care when they came to Prinsted Care Home and had received the training and support they needed. They said, “All the staff were so welcoming. It has given me stability. I am very glad I came here.” They described feeling confident in their role and demonstrated a good understanding of a person-centred approach to care.