Archived: Castlethorpe Nursing Home

Updated 15 February 2016

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 registered 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 unannounced inspection was carried out by an adult social care inspector and took place on 4 and 7 December 2015.

Before the inspection, we asked the registered provider to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR). This asks them to give key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. As part of our inspection we asked the local authority quality performance and safeguarding teams for their views and whether they had any concerns about the service. They told us the service worked with them to resolve any issues. We also looked at the information we hold about the registered provider.

During our inspection we observed how staff interacted with people who used the service and their relatives. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI) in the communal areas of the service. SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experiences of people who could not talk with us.

We spoke with four people who used the service, seven visiting relatives, two members of auxiliary care staff, two nursing staff, catering and ancillary staff, the acting manager, an administrator, the registered provider, and two community based health care professionals.

We looked at four care files belonging to people who used the service, three staff records and a selection of documentation relating to the management and running of the service. This included staff training files, staff rotas, meeting minutes, maintenance records, recruitment information and quality assurance audits that were carried out. We also undertook a tour of the building.

Updated 15 February 2016

We carried out this unannounced inspection over two days, on 4 and 7 December 2015. The service was last inspected on 09 January 2014 when it was found to be compliant with the regulations inspected.

Castlethorpe Nursing Home provides residential and nursing care for up to 59 people, some of whom may be living with dementia. Rooms are on two floors connected by a passenger lift. The home has three main lounge areas as well as a conservatory with views of the local countryside. At the time of our inspection there were 46 people using the service.

We found the registered manager for the service had resigned from their post earlier on in the year and an acting manager had been appointed to cover this post one month prior to our inspection. The acting manager was currently in the process of completing their application for their skills and competencies to be formally assessed by the Care Quality Commission. 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.

Assessments of people were carried out about known risks to ensure they were protected from potential harm. Training was provided for staff to ensure they knew how to safeguard people from potential abuse and checks were carried out of new staff before they were employed to ensure they were safe to work with people who used the service. Staffing levels were monitored to ensure there were sufficient numbers available for meeting people’s needs. People received their medicines from staff who had been trained on the safe handling and administration of medication. The building was clean and well maintained.

Staff were provided with training and development opportunities to help them develop their careers and enable them to effectively carry out their roles. Staff involved people and obtained their consent before carrying out interventions and best interest meetings were held when people lacked the capacity to make important decisions for themselves. People received a choice of nourishing home cooked meals which they said they enjoyed and community based health care professionals told us they had a good working relationship with the service.

People were supported by staff who demonstrated courtesy and consideration for the importance of maintaining their dignity and wishes for privacy. People’s private records and information was maintained in a confidential manner

People were provided with a range of opportunities for social stimulation and interaction. A complaints policy was in place to ensure people could raise any concerns about the service when required. People and their relatives were involved in the planning of their support that was reviewed on a regular and ongoing basis.

Management feedback was provided to staff in a constructive way and meetings took place to ensure staff were aware of their professional roles and responsibilities. A range of audits were regularly carried out to enable the quality of the service to be monitored and enable the service to learn. People and their relatives were consulted to ensure they could contribute their views to help the service to develop.