St Stephens Care Home

On this page

• Overview
• Person-centred Care
• Care provision, Integration and continuity
• Providing Information
• Listening to and involving people
• Equity in access
• Equity in experiences and outcomes
• Planning for the future

Responsive – this means we looked for evidence that the provider met people’s needs.

At our last assessment we rated this key question requires improvement. At this assessment the rating has changed to good. This meant people’s needs were met through good organisation and delivery.

At our last inspection the provider was in breach of Regulation 9 (person centred care). The provider had not always ensured care was designed to meet peoples’ needs and preferences. At this inspection we found enough improvement had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of this regulation.

This service scored 71 (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 made sure people were at the centre of their care and treatment choices and they decided, in partnership with people, how to respond to any relevant changes in people’s needs.

People’s care plans reflected their physical, mental, emotional and social needs, including those related to protected characteristics under the Equality Act.

Staff knew people well, both on a personal level and in relation to their care and support needs. An external professional confirmed, “Staff know the residents very well so can answer any queries in detail and with good knowledge of each.” They went on to say, “It is very clear that staff who work at St Stephens genuinely care about their work and about the people they support.”

The provider understood the diverse health and care needs of people and their local communities, so care was joined-up, flexible and supported choice and continuity.

People received coordinated and consistent care from staff who knew them well. People’s care records demonstrated staff followed advice from external health professionals, which helped to meet their assessed needs.

Staff took on board any advice provided by external professionals and acted on it, to ensure people had appropriate care provision and continuity. An external professional confirmed, “Any outcomes from reviews are actioned in a timely fashion.”

The provider supplied appropriate, accurate and up-to-date information in formats that were tailored to individual needs.

Processes were in place to help ensure people’s communication needs were met to enable them to engage in their care, treatment and support to maximize their experience and outcomes. People’s care plans contained details of how the person best communicated with staff.

The provider made it easy for people to share feedback and ideas, or raise complaints about their care, treatment and support. Staff involved people in decisions about their care and told them what had changed as a result.

People confirmed they knew how to give feedback about their experiences of care and support including how to raise any concerns or issues. People felt listened to and were able to give their views freely.

Resident and relatives’ meetings were held to encourage people and their families to have a say.

Staff listened to people and acted on any feedback about their care. An external professional told us, “There is always excellent communication from the team.”

The provider made sure that people could access the care, support and treatment they needed when they needed it.

The provider worked in conjunction with external professionals to ensure people were able to access external services. For example, we saw how the service engaged with a professional to help address a specific nutritional need of the person.

Processes were in place to ensure people did not experience any barriers in accessing the care and support they required. People’s care records evidenced where people had accessed care from external agencies (such as GP’s and district nurses).

Staff and leaders actively listened to information about people who are most likely to experience inequality in experience or outcomes and tailored their care, support and treatment in response to this.

Processes were in place to help ensure people’s care, treatment and support promoted equality, removed barriers and protected their rights. Electronic care planning meant people’s care plans and profiles could be shared across a multidisciplinary team where appropriate. This helped people access the most appropriate care and support for them.

Although we were assured people were supported to plan for important life changes, so they could have enough time to make informed decisions about their future, including at the end of their life, people’s care records did not always evidence their preferences had been recorded. This included people with a DNA CPR in place.

We spoke with the manager about this and they assured us they would address this immediately.

The service had achieved the ‘Six Steps Programme’ (the programme is designed as a toolkit for care homes to support them to meet best practice in end-of-life care.)

People’s families felt supported and involved in the last day of their loved one’s life. An external professional commented, “People’s families are very grateful for the end-of-life support provided for their loved ones by the St Stephen’s team.”