Archived: Cherry Trees

Updated 9 March 2015

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, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 2 and 5 February 2015 and was unannounced on the first day.

The inspection team consisted of an adult social care inspector and an expert by experience with expertise in the care of older people. An expert-by-experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Prior to the inspection visit we gathered information from a number of sources. We looked at the information received about the service from notifications sent to the Care Quality Commission by the manager. We also contacted Healthwatch Rotherham and looked on the NHS Choices web site to gather further information about the service. We spoke with a visiting GP and Palliative care advisor. We also spoke with and received information from the local authority commissioners who also monitor the standards within the home.

The service was not asked to complete a provider information return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

At the time of our inspection there were 23 people using the service. We spoke with the manager, a senior, four care staff, the activity coordinator and the cook. We also spoke with eight people who used the service and three visiting relatives. This helped us evaluate the quality of interactions that took place between people living in the home and the staff who supported them.

We spent time observing care throughout the service. We also used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us.

We looked at documentation relating to people who used the service, staff and the management of the service. We looked at three people’s written records, including the plans of their care. We also looked at the systems used to manage people’s medication, including the storage and records kept. We also looked at the quality assurance systems to check if they were robust and identified areas for improvement.

Updated 9 March 2015

This was an unannounced inspection carried out on 2 and 5 February 2015. We last inspected the service in July 2013 and found they had breaches in Regulations 9 (Care and welfare of people who use services), Regulations 13 (Management of medicines) and Regulation 10 (Assessing and monitoring the quality of service provision). The provider sent us several action plans which told us how they were addressing the issues in the last report. At this inspection we found the provider had made the required improvements to address the breaches in Regulations 9, 10 and 13.

Cherry Trees Care Home is situated in the Kimberworth Park area to the north west of Rotherham. The home is purpose built and facilities are provided on the ground and first floor level; access to the first floor is by a lift. Cherry Trees is registered to provide accommodation for 66 people who require personal care. Some people living at the service had a diagnosis of dementia. At the time of this inspection there were 23 people using the service.

The manager had submitted an application to be the registered manager of the service and attended a ‘fit person interview’ on the second day of this inspection. We have not been notified that this process has been completed at the time of writing this report. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons.’ Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People told us they felt safe living in Cherry Trees. One person said, “Staff are here for you, they make you feel safe. It’s nice living here.” There were procedures to follow if staff had any concerns about the safety of people they supported. The requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 were in place to protect people who may not have the capacity to make decisions for themselves. The Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) sets out what must be done to make sure that the human rights of people who may lack mental capacity to make decisions are protected, including balancing autonomy and protection in relation to consent or refusal of care or treatment.

People’s physical health was monitored as required. This included the monitoring of people’s health conditions and symptoms so appropriate referrals to health professionals could be made. For example we spoke with the palliative care advisor who told us, “Cherry Trees staff are very good at making timely referrals to ensure the appropriate care is given to people who are approaching their end of life.” We also spoke to a visiting GP who said, “The staff act in a timely manner to seek medical advice.”

There were sufficient staff with the right skills and competencies to meet the assessed needs of people living in the home. Staff were aware of people’s nutritional needs and made sure they supported people to have a healthy diet, with choices of a good variety of food and drink. People we spoke with told us they enjoyed the meals and there was always something on the menu they liked.

People were able to access activities. Plans to utilise the summer house were on the way to make best use of the gardens when the weather becomes warmer. People could also access religious services which were held periodically at the home.

We found the home had a friendly relaxed atmosphere which felt homely. Staff approached people in a kind and caring way which encouraged people to express how and when they needed support. One person said, “It feels like home living here.” Another person said, “Staff are always there when you need help.”

Staff told us they felt supported and they could raise any concerns with the registered manager and felt that they were listened to. People told us they were aware of the complaints procedure and said staff would assist them if they needed to use it. We noted from the records that no formal complaints had been received in the last 12 months.

There were effective systems in place to monitor and improve the quality of the service provided. We saw copies of reports produced by the registered manager and the provider. The reports included any actions required and these were checked each month to determine progress.