Archived: Peartree House Care Home

At the last inspection completed on 9 March 2015, the service was asked to improve their systems to check and maintain the safety and suitability of the building and there was no registered manager in post.

A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manager 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.

At this inspection there was a registered manager at the home. However improvements had not been made to the maintenance of the environment.

Peartree House is a care home that provides residential care for people living with dementia. It is registered for 55 people. At the time of inspection there were 34 people using the service.

We found safety issues around the outside garden area of the building and we asked the service to take immediate action. There were also areas within the building that were in need of maintenance and refurbishment. The auditing systems were not effective because the provider had failed to take action in a timely manner on areas of concern identified by these checks.

People and their relatives felt the service was safe and staff were skilled in giving care. Staff were knowledgeable about safeguarding and whistleblowing. The service had safe recruitment practices and there were enough staff to support people with their needs. Staff received training opportunities and new staff received an induction programme of training. Staff also received regular supervisions and appraisals. Medicines were managed safely. People had an assessment of their needs and risk management plans were in place to mitigate risks.

Staff were knowledgeable about people’s dietary requirements and people had a choice of food and fluids from a varied and nutritious menu. People had access to healthcare professionals as they required it. Staff knew how to deliver personalised care and were knowledgeable about people’s preferences. There was a variety of activities on offer which included activities away from the home.

The service worked within the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act (2005) and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. Staff were knowledgeable about when they needed to obtain consent from people and about how to maintain people’s privacy and dignity whilst maintaining their independence.

The provider had systems in place to check the quality of service provided. People and their representatives were able to give feedback through quality surveys and meetings. Staff attended regular team meetings to receive updates and guidance on giving effective care.

We found three breaches of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. You can see what action we told the provider to take at the back of the full version of the report.

Before care was given staff explained what they were going to do and offered people choice. For those who could not express themselves coherently, staff paid attention to body language and facial expression. Staff were aware of the deprivation of liberty safeguards and were able explain when this was required.

We observed staff use protective clothing and wash their hands appropriately. The home was clean. The COSHH cupboard was locked and peoples laundry was segregated.

We checked medicine records and found them updated. Staff who gave medicine had all attended an update session in 2013. Staff were able to explain the ordering, administering, storage and disposal of medicine.

There were appropriate recruitment and selection procedures in place. We checked five staff files and found that all had two references and appropriate disclosure checks.

Equipment was clean and had service dates. Several quality audits had been completed and included infection control, medication and documentation. People were able to express their views to the manager and by completing a customer satisfaction survey.