South Chowdene

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

Caring – this means we looked for evidence that the service involved people andtreated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect. At the 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 70 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

Staff treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. People told us they felt cared for by staff who were friendly and respectful, and we observed positive, warm interactions that helped people feel valued. One relative said, “The staff are all really kind here. I never wanted to come into a home, but I am glad I came here.” Staff were attentive and maintained people’s dignity during personal care. Relatives praised long-serving staff for their knowledge of residents’ needs and highlighted improvements since the appointment of a permanent manager and deputy manager.

Staff treated people as individuals and made sure the care, support and treatment offered met their needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics. Staff had valued everyone’s opinions. People’s individuality was respected, and staff encouraged choice in daily routines such as meals and activities. Relatives told us staff were approachable and responsive to concerns, and they valued continuity of care, particularly for residents with memory issues.

Staff promoted people’s independence. They made sure people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing. People were encouraged to do tasks for themselves where possible, with staff offering assistance only when needed. One person said, “They listen to me and provide all the help I need but also allow my independence.”

Staff listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes. We observed overall staff were responsive to individual’s needs and people told us they did not have to wait overly long when they called for assistance. Most people spent their days in the communal areas, and relatives raised concerns about people being left unsupervised in communal areas, which we also observed. We found the staffing levels at times meant staff could not respond to these people’s needs in a timely manner. People sat in wheelchairs from breakfast to just before lunch prior to staff being available to assist them to transfer to armchairs. Often this transfer had just occurred, and they then needed to wait for staff to transfer them back to a wheelchair to go for lunch. Some relatives noted the absence of an activity’s coordinator, which limited opportunities for mental stimulation for those who were more independent. The registered manager agreed to take action to resolve these issues. They were in the process of recruiting a new activities coordinator and expected this process to be completed by the end of the year.

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported staff to always deliver person-centred care. Staff spoke positively about the new management team and the encouragement they received. They described feeling more involved in contributing to service improvements. While staff highlighted the pressures they faced during busy periods because of the current staffing levels, most said teamwork and morale had improved significantly. Training was provided, and plans were in place to increase face-to-face learning to better meet staff needs.