Meadow Park

On this page

• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

Effective – this means we looked for evidence that people’s care, treatment and support achieved good outcomes and promoted a good quality of life, based on best available evidence. 

At our last inspection we rated this key question good. At this inspection the rating has remained good. This meant people’s outcomes were consistently good, and people’s feedback confirmed this.

This service scored 79 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

Staff at the service made sure people’s care and treatment was effective by assessing and reviewing their health, care, wellbeing and communication needs with them. A professional commented, “Staff are very proactive in maintaining contact with hospital for updates when clients are admitted and will visit and assess face to face as needed.” Staff said there were effective systems in place to assess and monitor people’s needs. This included handover meetings between incoming and outgoing staff on shift, daily meetings and staff meetings. A staff member commented, “We have the 11:00 stand up meeting daily – this will go ahead if the manager is not available and will be led by the most senior person on duty. It is an opportunity to share any concerns, updates on issues raised the previous day, people with hospital visits, any celebrations, for example, birthdays that day.”

Staff planned and delivered people’s care and treatment with them, including what was important and mattered to them. They did this in line with legislation and current evidence-based good practice and standards. The environment was very well-designed to meet the needs of people who may be living with dementia. The Memory Lane unit on the ground floor was a large area, bright and well-ventilated. There was an internal garden in the centre which had plants, furniture and garden ornaments. The garden area was secure and looked well used. We observed people walked freely into the garden area themselves and did not need to wait for staff support. It was accessed from points around Memory Lane.

The atmosphere on the unit was calm and relaxed as music played. There were areas of interest around the unit. The unit featured a corridor layout with various communal areas branching off, providing people with spaces to move around freely or sit and relax. It was a very interactive area with lots of interesting things for the people to use. There were tactile displays on the walls including vintage cars, records hanging from the ceiling, and lots of other textural objects. There were musical instruments and a piano. There was a coat and hatstand and a shoe rack for people if they wanted to try on the clothes. There was a vintage typewriter on a shelf ready to be used. There were dolls, a pram and dolls clothes in the lounge. There was an area with dusters and cloths and clothes for people to hang out. People were engaged in tasks of interest to them such as dusting, pegging out ‘washing’, some people were sitting with staff engaged in a group activity, other people were supported by staff to explore the different areas and try out the orientation objects. Areas of Memory Lane were themed in different colours to help orientate people. For example, in the orange area there were pictures of cricket teams and football coins from the World cup. People’s bedrooms doors were decorated and signed to help them identify their room.

Staff ensured people’s health needs were monitored and they received a nutritious diet, which, when needed, followed dietitian’s guidance. A relative told us, “[Name] thinks the food is fantastic, they are loving it, they have put on weight. Staff encourage [Name] to be healthy.” A person commented, “The food in here, is good. It is home cooked, and you can get plenty of coffee.” The catering staff understood people’s needs and how to promote a healthy diet. Initiatives had been introduced by the catering staff for people who lived with dementia and were at risk of poor nutrition, as they did not like to sit down for a meal. Graze boxes were filled with particular finger foods and treats that people may like to eat, so they could dip into them as they walked around. The chef monitored what the most popular contents were to ensure people were encouraged to eat. A professional commented, “This is best practice at its best.”

Staff at the service worked well across teams and services to support people to ensure they received timely, seamless and consistent care. They made timely referrals and worked very well with other agencies to ensure people's treatment needs were met. A relative told us, “I came a couple of weeks ago to discuss [Name]s’ needs. There was a 6-week review with social services and the home. There were no issues with the care.”

Staff always supported people to manage their health and wellbeing to fully maximise their independence, choice and control. Staff supported people to live healthier lives and where possible, reduce their future needs for care and support. Staff worked closely with other professionals. A professional commented, “Meadow Park staff have been persistent in their approach to establish a working relationship with the GP surgery, discussing with the practice manager the importance of a weekly ward round and someone who can prescribe as needed for clients. They also make contact as needed throughout the week requesting GP review in a timely manner.” People and relatives told us they were supported to access health care. A relative commented, “Staff get the doctor quickly and keep us fully informed.”

Staff at the service monitored all people’s care and treatment to continuously improve it. They ensured that outcomes were positive and consistent, and that they fully met both clinical expectations and the expectations of people themselves. Care plans were detailed, personalised and provided guidance to ensure outcomes could be met ensuring people received safe, consistent and effective support. There was a system of regular evaluation of risk assessments and people's care plans. Reviews were carried out regularly with people to ensure people's support and outcomes were monitored and in line with their wishes. A person told us, “If there is a meeting my relative comes as well.” A relative commented, “We are involved, we have reviews about [Name]’s care and how they are doing.”

Staff told people about their rights around consent and respected these when delivering person-centred care and treatment. Assessments were carried out, around people’s mental capacity and care records contained relevant information. Records captured all the relevant others involved in Best Interest decision making, where people did not have the mental capacity to give consent. A person commented, “Staff ask for my consent.”