St Gregory's House Limited

Updated 3 March 2021

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.

We had received information of concern about infection control and prevention measures at this service. This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection prevention and control (IPC) measures the provider has in place. The team consisted of an adult social care inspector and an infection prevention nurse practitioner. Following the joint visit the IPC nurse practitioner continued to visit the service weekly and verify good IPC practice had been embedded. This has provided CQC with assurance regarding effectiveness of IPC practices within the service

The joint inspection took place on 25 January 2021 and was announced.

Updated 3 March 2021

About the service

St Gregory’s House Limited is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care for up to 30 older people. At the time of the inspection there were 23 people living there but three of those were currently receiving treatment in hospital. The home is a large detached three storey Victorian property that has been suitably extended for it’s purpose.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

We looked at medicines management and found that people's medicines were being safely managed and given as prescribed and at the correct times. The nurse in charge told us people had received their medicines at the times that they had been prescribed for. One person told us they managed their own medications and staff supported with making sure there was always enough stock.

There were 16 people sitting in the main lounge when we arrived on the first day at 6.15pm. Most of them were watching the TV, one person was reading the newspaper and two others were in conversation with staff.

There were enough numbers of staff available to meet peoples needs and ensure people were monitored and kept safe. We noted that the main lounge was never left unattended by staff. Records we looked at showed people’s risks of falling had been identified. Care and treatment plans informed staff how to manage these risks.

When we arrived on the first day two people were already in bed and this was because they had skin integrity risks and were having bedrest was part of their care and treatment plan. Two people were in their rooms by choice. People we spoke with told us they had no concerns were happy living at the home. One person told us, “I cannot fault the care here, there’s plenty of staff when I want them.”

Care and treatment plans we looked at identified people’s preferences for bedtime routines and we saw records that showed people were checked on regularly through the night by staff to ensure they were safe. We also saw recorded where someone had asked not to be checked on as it disturbed their sleep.

Staff told us about changes that had been made to the evening routines in the home in February 2019 by the newly appointed registered manager. We also saw staff meeting minutes that confirmed that some routines prior to procedure changes in February may have restricted people in their preferred bedtime routines. We saw that the changes in procedures meant staff promoted a safer and more person-centred approach to people’s evening routines.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 24 August 2018). At this inspection we found the ratings have remained the same.

Why we inspected

We received concerns in relation to people not receiving their evening medications as prescribed, there not being sufficient staff for evening routines, people’s falls risks not being managed and people’s bedtime routines not being at times of their choice. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the Key Questions of Safe and Well-led only.

We reviewed the information we held about the service. No areas of concern were identified in the other Key Questions. We therefore did not inspect them. Ratings from previous comprehensive inspections for those Key Questions were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection.

The overall rating for the service has remained the same. This is based on the findings at this inspection. We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from the concerns. Please see the safe and well-led sections of this full report.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for St. Gregory’s House Limited on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.