Cornelius House

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 remained outstanding. This meant people were truly respected and valued as individuals; and empowered as partners in their care in an exceptional service.

This service scored 90 (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 was exceptional at treating people with kindness, empathy and compassion and in how they respected people’s privacy and dignity.

We observed people being supported in a respectful, familiar way in which staff showed a genuine compassion towards people with gentle prompts and interactions used to initiate support. We saw a person with a specific health condition which can raise anxiety, be approached by staff in a manner detailed in the person’s care documents. This involved a particularly soft tone of voice given from a distance the person could hear but felt wasn’t startling, staff then used gentle hand to hand touch whilst offering support demonstrating compassion for the person.

People and their relatives gave consistent feedback about the overwhelmingly kind and caring nature of the staff. One person said, “They are all very nice people, staff are absolutely great.” And another said, “Staff are lovely, very kind and understanding.” Whilst a relative said, “They are all very good at what they do.” And another said, “Staff are exceptional. They become true friends to the residents. They are warm and funny and seem to care hugely about the wellbeing of everyone.” A relative told us how staff’s empathetic support following an emotionally challenging time had significantly impacted their loved one and themselves by helping the person to re-engage with social activities, attributing this to the staff’s kind gentle companionate approach.

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

Staff demonstrated a true understanding of the people they were supporting and their unique differences and how these differences effected their support. A person with a specific health condition who found accepting personal care challenging, chose object-mediated communication in which objects such as soft toys are used to speak through as their preferred method. This had been consistently applied across the staff team resulting in reduced anxiety, and increased engagement with personal care support. This also led to the person’s prescribed medication, in place to reduce anxiety had not been needed.

We observed staff responding to a person requesting support to move. Staff supported their specific health condition by describing the environment around them as they navigated it and ensured the pace of support matched the person’s abilities.

A person with a specific health condition, who valued their independence and choice in daily life was supported to achieve this by staff focusing on their strengths and abilities. Staff described items of clothing helping the person to make informed choices about their appearance. Activities were also tailored to the person which included stories and life history conversations supporting their wellbeing. One staff member, when describing how they adapted care delivery for a person with a visual impairment said, “It’s not just about physical support, people’s daily life experiences can make a huge difference to their wellbeing, all the little things add up. We make sure our approach is consistent, how we greet them taking care not to startle them by announcing ourselves.”

People were actively involved in reviewing their care documents meaning changes made captured their individual wants and preferences accurately as they developed, with any changes made in collaboration. This person led approach was fully embedded and this ensured care delivery was also person led. One person said, “I don’t like any faff, but I do like how they talk to me, we work well together.” Whilst another person said, “I enjoy having a chat, they take time to speak with me and we share stories.” The provider’s care delivery system was flexible fitting each person and could be adjusted to suit their specific needs. We saw examples of this and how people’s outcomes were positively affected.

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 had choice and control over the care they received by a staff team who respected their choices whilst promoting people’s independence. For example, staff supported a person to maintain their independence by promoting their mobility, gently encouraging them to walk short distances whilst keeping the person’s choice of when to stop and use their wheelchair at the forefront; this balance kept the person in control and help maintain their strengths. Another example was in staff approach to offering people personal care, by acknowledging their different preferences and promoting their daily life skills, people began to engage and accept support more frequently impacting their health and overall wellbeing.

We observed activities being provided to be of a very high-quality mixing fun and creating moments of social interaction with movement matching people’s capabilities, further supporting dexterity helping retain and grow people’s strengths in other areas of their daily life. A schedule was available to people so they could choose the activities they wanted to take part in which included regular trips out of the service to places of interest in direct response to feedback. A person said, “Activities are very good here, Yoga is my favourite and we go out quite a lot.”

The provider was exceptional in how they listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff responded to people’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

The Registered Manager transformed routine care reviews into an opportunity for active listening, ensuring that residents remained at the absolute centre of their own care planning. By creating an unhurried, supportive environment, the manager successfully captured subtle shifts in residents' physical and emotional well-being, allowing the service to identify and respond immediately to changing care needs. For example, a person had expressed they were worried about living in a shared environment as they had limited experience of spending time in other company. The registered manager and staff used this information, to gently introduce activities matching the persons likes delicately with others who had similar characters. We observed the person actively taking part in activities with vigour and enthusiasm.

We observed staff responding to a person with a specific health condition in the moment, in a way reflecting their care plan demonstrating staff knowledge of the person and understanding of dementia. The person approached staff who all acknowledged their concerns and beliefs whilst gently redirecting the persons focus. This consistently balanced approach helped the person maintain their emotional wellbeing and met their needs.

Details about people’s health conditions, personalities and preferences contained in their care documents gave staff the guidance they needed to see changes in their health and respond to them in line with people’s wishes. These included how people like to be approached and what method of communication was most effective. For example, staff were knowledgeable around supporting people with diabetes and knew how to identify changes in a person’s communication, mood and behaviour indicating their blood sugar levels were not normal for the person. This meant staff were able to respond quickly and reduce risks to the persons health.

People had access to a call bell system they could use to request support and spoke about how promptly staff responded. One person said, “When I use my call bell, they always come to see what I need.” The provider had identified the location of the nearest Automated External Defibrillator (AED) used to increase people’s chances of survival experiencing cardiac arrest, was outside the effective distance. The provider purchased an AED and provided staff with training in its operation helping staff respond quickly and promote people’s recovery.

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

Staff told us they felt supported by the registered manager who provided opportunities to develop their skills and knowledge. One staff member said, “The shift patterns work around my life and other commitments and [registered manager’s name] checks if I’m ok.” Another staff member said, “I feel well supported, the training is good and if I have any issues their door is always open for a chat. We have a little pod outside which is nice to take breaks in.” A thorough induction, comprehensive training and a rota pattern that was flexible facilitated staff to fulfil their roles and promoted their wellbeing.