DRS Care Home

Updated 25 November 2022

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

The inspection was conducted by one inspector.

Service and service type

DRS Care Home is a 'care home'. People in care homes receive accommodation and personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since it was last inspected. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make.

During the inspection

We met all 4 people who lived in the home. People could not use words to tell us about their experience, we observed interactions between people using the service and staff and spoke with relatives. We spoke with 4 staff including the registered manager, operations manager, 2 care staff and 4 relatives. We reviewed 4 people’s care records including risk assessments and 4 staff files in relation to recruitment. We also reviewed a range of management records including staff training and supervision, quality audits, medicines, and complaints.

Updated 25 November 2022

About the service

DRS Care Home is a residential care home providing accommodation and personal care to up to 4 people with a learning disability, people with mental health needs and /or autistic people. At the time of the inspection 4 people were living at the home. The home is a terraced house in a residential area, which is over 2 floors with access to a garden area. People have access to a communal kitchen, lounge and dining room area.

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. 'Right support, right care, right culture' is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.

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

Right Support:

Staff supported people to access health and social care support in the community. They supported people being involved in maintaining their own health and wellbeing where possible. Staff communicated with people in ways that met their needs. The service gave people care and support in a safe environment that met their sensory and physical needs. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

Right Care:

People's needs were appropriately assessed before they moved to the service. The service worked together with healthcare professionals and relatives to ensure people's needs could be met. People were supported with nutrition and hydration. Care was person-centred and promoted people's dignity, privacy and human rights. Staff understood how to protect people from poor care and abuse. Staff were appropriately trained on how to recognise and report abuse and they knew how to report safeguarding concerns. Relatives told us their love ones were safe living at the service. Care records contained risk assessments with clear guidance for staff to follow. Medicines were managed safely. Staff were recruited safely. The premises were clean and well maintained.

Right Culture:

The registered manager promoted a person-centred environment and people experienced good outcomes. Relatives spoke positively about the management team and staff. People received good quality care, and support because trained staff and specialists could meet their needs and wishes.

Staff understood people’s needs in relation to their strengths, impairments or sensitivities people with a learning disability and/or autistic people may have. This enabled people to receive compassionate and empowering care that was tailored to their needs. Staff knew and understood people well and were responsive, supporting their aspirations to live a quality life of their choosing.

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 10 January 2020)

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about the provider in relation to the management of the service, staffing levels, recruitment and medicines management. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe, effective and well-led only. For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.

We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from these concerns. Please see the safe, effective and well-led sections of this full report.

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the 'all reports' link for DRS Care Home on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.