Background to this inspection
Updated
11 June 2019
The inspection: We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
Inspection team: The inspection team consisted of one adult social care inspector and an expert-by-experience. An expert-by-experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service. The expert by experience involved in this inspection had experience of caring for older adults and people living with a dementia.
Service and service type: St Omer is a care home. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.
The home had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.
Notice of inspection: The inspection was unannounced and took place on the 25 and 28 February 2019.
What we did: Before the inspection we reviewed the information, we held about the home, including notifications we had received. Notifications are changes, events or incidents the provider is legally required to tell us about within required timescales. We also asked the provider to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR). The PIR is information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give us some key information about the home, what the home does well and improvements they plan to make. We used this information to plan the inspection.
We spoke with 14 people living at the service, four relatives, five members of staff, and the registered provider who is also the registered manager. We asked the local authority who commissions care services from the home for their views on the care and support provided. Following the inspection, we received feedback from two health and social care professionals and eight relatives.
To help us assess and understand how people's care needs were being met we reviewed five people’s care records. We also reviewed a number of records relating to the running of the home. These included staff recruitment and training records, medicine records and records associated with the provider's quality assurance systems.
Updated
11 June 2019
About the service:
St Omer is a residential care home set within its own landscaped gardens. The home is set of two floors and provides accommodation and personal care for up to 28 older people some of whom may be living with a dementia or have a physical frailty. At the time of the inspection there were 21 people living at the home.
People’s experience of using this service:
People and their relatives consistently told us they were treated with exceptional kindness, compassion and respect and described their experience at St Omer as ‘outstanding.’ Comments included, “Fantastic,” “Exceptional,” “They know what I want before I do."
The provider's values and vision were embedded into the service, staff and culture. The provider and registered manager were passionate and committed to providing a service where people received personalised care and support.
People were protected from potential abuse by staff who had received training and were confident in raising concerns. There was a thorough recruitment process in place that checked potential staff were safe to work with people who may be vulnerable.
Risks had been appropriately assessed and staff had been provided with information on how to support people safely.
People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems supported this practice.
People and their relatives were involved in making decisions about their care. The service had established good links and worked in partnership with key organisations that provided social care services to improve people's opportunities and experiences.
People had access to a wide range of activities which met their personal preferences. Staff knew people well and described them as being kind, caring and compassionate. We were provided with many examples which demonstrated how the provider and staff had gone ‘above and beyond’ for people. For example, by going out of their way to buy personalised gift or just by taking the time to mend a treasured ornament or picture frame.
People, relatives and healthcare professionals told the home was exceptionally well led. Staff understood what was expected of them and were motivated to provide and maintain high standards of personalised care which treated people with dignity and respect.
The management team demonstrated a passion for providing a high-quality service, which was continually being developed to meet each person’s needs and there was a strong emphasis upon striving for continuous improvement and excellence. One relative said, “We have high expectations and I’m pleased to say so do they.”
The provider had a strong and effective governance system in place. The management team continued to carry out a regular programme of audits to assess the safety and quality of the service and identify issues.
The home was clean, well maintained and people were protected from the risk and/or spread of infection as staff had access to personal protective equipment (PPE).
Rating at last inspection: The home was previously rated as ‘Good.’ The report was published on the 7 September 2016.
Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection that was scheduled to take place in line with Care Quality Commission scheduling guidelines for adult social care services.
Follow up: We will continue to monitor the service through the information we receive until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk