Background to this inspection
Updated
11 March 2022
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 was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.
As part of The Care Quality Commission's (CQC) response to care homes with outbreaks of COVID-19, we are conducting reviews to ensure that the Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) practice is safe and that services are compliant with IPC measures. This was a targeted inspection looking at the IPC practices the provider has in place. We also asked the provider about any staffing pressures the service was experiencing and whether this was having an impact on the service.
This inspection took place on 22 February 2022 and was announced. We gave the service several hours' notice of the inspection
Updated
11 March 2022
About the service: Heathfield Residential Home is a care home that provides accommodation and personal care for up to 25 ladies. The home is a large Victorian three-storey privately owned care home in the village of Grappenhall in Warrington.
People’s experience of using this service: People living at Heathfield Residential service benefitted from an outstandingly caring and responsive service. The people we spoke with consistently told us they were very happy, felt safe and were treated with exceptional kindness. The home was warm, welcoming and homely with a luxurious feel.
Without exception, people and their relatives told us that the staff were kind, caring and went over and above what you would expect in a care home.
There were enough staff to meet people’s needs and provide companionship to the people that lived there. People were empowered to retain their independence and live their life in the way they chose.
Medicines were safely managed and those who were assessed as able to self-medicate were encouraged to do so.
Staff showed a detailed knowledge of the lives of people who lived there. They knew their parents’ names, where they grew up and engaged in meaningful conversations about people’s lives and histories. Staff were particularly sensitive to times when people living there needed reassurance and compassion.
The service used a variety of tools to communicate with people and their representatives. Relatives of people who lived there were encouraged to be as involved in their relatives care as they wished. The service offered regular social events that included open invitations to friends and relatives.
There were varied and innovative activities that incorporated the use of new technology and worked in collaboration with academic research. People who wished to go out were taken to the places of their choosing, examples included the beach, the theatre, the pub and many more.
People told us they enjoyed the food and were offered a variety of choices made with fresh ingredients. During the inspection we saw that the food was appetising and mealtimes were a friendly, sociable time. People who wished to eat alone were supported to do so.
The registered provider was working in collaboration with academic researchers at Lancaster University to develop innovative, interactive technology to improve the lives of people living with dementia.
The service used assistive technology to keep people safe. Extra security measures had been researched and implemented. These included door alarms, a second half-door outside the main door, hall sensors and a GPS tracker bracelet for people who were at risk of trying to leave the building.
People were supported to maintain their diverse needs and preferences. Staff were aware if people followed a faith and empowered them to continue to do this. The service had its own chaplain and retained links with other religious communities.
People who lived at the service and staff, spoke highly of a fair, supportive and approachable management team.
Staff who had been identified as strong in certain areas were asked to take the lead in certain aspects of care and advise the management team where improvements could be made.
More information is in the full report
Rating at last inspection: At the last inspection the service was awarded an outstanding rating. (Published 10 September 2016)
Why we inspected: This inspection was a planned comprehensive inspection. We had not received information of concern prior to or during the inspection.