Sefton New Directions Limited - Chase Heys Resource Centre is a purpose built establishment providing accommodation and personal care for 30 older people. The care home has 19 respite places and 11 intermediate care places (places supported by rehabilitation services from the local NHS provider.)
This was an unannounced inspection which took place on 1 April 2015. The inspection team consisted of an adult social care inspector. The service was last inspected in January 2014 and was meeting standards at that time.
The service had a registered manager in post. 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.
When we spoke with people living at Chase Heys they told us they were settled and felt safe at home. All of the people we spoke with commented on consistently high standards of care. People said, ‘’Staff are very obliging and it’s very well organised’’ and “I feel so relaxed and safe here.’’
To support the 18 people accommodated at the home on the day of the inspection there was normally a minimum of five care staff. They worked on both respite and intermediate care. We saw from the duty rota that this staff ratio was consistently in place to provide safe care.
We looked at how staff were recruited and the processes to ensure staff were suitable to work with vulnerable people. We saw checks had been made so that staff employed were ‘fit’ to work with vulnerable people.
We found Chase Heys were good at managing risks so that people could be as independent as possible. We spoke with two health care professionals who supported people in the home. They felt that staff managed people’s care needs well and this included ensuring their safety.
When asked about medicines, people said they were supported well. We observed good practice when staff administered medicines to ensure people received medicines safely.
The staff we spoke with clearly described how they would recognise abuse and the action they would take to ensure actual or potential harm was reported. Training records confirmed staff had undertaken safeguarding training. All of the staff we spoke with were clear about the need to report any concerns they had.
Arrangements were in place for checking the environment to ensure it was safe. For example, health and safety audits were completed on a regular basis where obvious hazards were identified.
We observed staff provide support and the interactions we saw showed how staff communicated and supported people as individuals. Staff were able to explain each person’s care needs and how they communicated these needs.
There were two models of care running together at Chase Heys. The ‘respite’ service offered short stay support for people who then return home. ‘Intermediate care’ was also offered. This is for people who have completed care in hospital and need further support and rehabilitation before returning home. The GP involved in the management of people on intermediate care said Chase Hays provided a particularly effective service as people could also be referred directly from home so that a period of support might avert a hospital admission.
People we spoke with, relatives and health care professionals were aware that staff had the skills and approach needed to ensure people were receiving the right care.
We looked to see if the service was working within the legal framework of the Mental Capacity Act (2005) [MCA]. This is legislation to protect and empower people who may not be able to make their own decisions.
People told us the meals were particularly good and well presented. We observed and spoke with people enjoying breakfast. We were told that breakfast was flexible and there was always choice available with all meals.
We asked people if they were treated with dignity, respect, kindness and compassion. One person we spoke with had just completed a stay of respite are. We were told, ‘’Everybody has been lovely; the food is great and I’ve really enjoyed my stay.’’ Staff were particularly noted as kind, helpful and caring.
We made observations at times throughout the inspection. The interactive skills displayed by the staff when engaged with people were excellent and people’s sense of wellbeing was very evident.
We found that care plans and records were individualised to people’s preferences and reflected their identified needs from admission and during their stay. There was evidence that care plans had been discussed with people so they felt involved in their care.
Social activities were organised. One person said, ‘’Activities are organised every day. They are interesting and enjoyable’’. A recent development in the home had been the introduction of a Wi-Fi system. This was in response to people requesting to bring IT equipment in for their stay. This was an example of the service listening to people’s requests and it helped to increase people’s independence and avoid feelings of social isolation.
We spent time talking to the manager and asked them to define the culture of the home and the main aims and objectives. These are exemplified in the information provided before the inspection which stated: ‘A relaxed professional atmosphere is encouraged by senior staff to encourage a friendly and welcoming atmosphere for service users and visitors’.
A well-developed process was in place to seek the views of people living at the home and their families. The manager was able to evidence a series of quality assurance processes and audits carried out. These were fairly comprehensive and helped ensure standards of care where maintained consistently as well as providing feedback for on-going development of the service.