Archived: The Gables Nursing Home

At our previous inspection a number of compliance actions were set for areas that included supporting workers and management of medicines. At this inspection we found that steps had been taken by the provider and some of these areas were compliant. However we also found areas of non-compliance.

We observed that staff provided personal care to people but did not have any additional time to spend with people for social interaction or stimulation. We observed a lack of regular activities at the home. An activities coordinator had been in post for six weeks.

At the time of the inspection there was an appointed manager in day to day charge, who had been in post for three months. There was not a registered manager at the home.

We spoke with five people living in the home. One person told us staff were 'very good', three people told us the staff were 'good' and one person said they were 'all right'. When asked if staff were kind one person replied, 'not necessarily'. We also spoke with relatives of people living at the home during our visit.

At the time of the inspection there was an appointed manager in day to day charge, who had been in post for one week. There was not a registered manager at the home.

There were 44 people living at the home which was split into two accommodation areas; one for the frail and elderly and one for people with dementia. Due to the varied levels of communication ability of people at the home, we used a variety of methods to assess the care provided. This included speaking with some of the people and looking at the care records. We sat in one of the lounges and observed interactions between staff and the people they were caring for. We also spoke with relatives of people living at the home during our visit.

We observed staff speaking to people in a friendly and polite manner. One person living at the home told us that the staff were 'Really good'. We saw that domestic staff acknowledged people's requests and treated them in a kind and helpful manner. For example we observed the laundry assistant accompany one person, who wished to collect her own clothes from the laundry. The member of staff engaged with the person in a warm friendly manner. We saw that the person responded with a smile and accepted the support of the staff member. A relative told us that staff 'Are brilliant here'.

We observed a lack of regular activities at the home. Our observations confirmed that care staff provided personal care to people but did not have any additional time to spend with people for social interaction or stimulation.

We spoke to the manager and a nurse who was on duty. Their comments indicated they did not have an understanding of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and how it should be applied to protect vulnerable people who did not have capacity to make decisions for themselves.

Care records we looked at confirmed that the provider had not made appropriate for obtaining and acting in accordance with the consent of people in relation to their care and welfare when they were unable to give their consent.