Archived: Chantry House Residential and Nursing Home

At the time of our inspection there were 22 residents living at Chantry House. The majority of the people who used the service were living with dementia and had limited ability to communicate with us verbally. However, we did speak with three people who used the service. One person told us, 'They are very busy here.' Another told us, 'Staff are nice they help me with my bath.'

We looked at the care records of four people who used the service. The provider told us within their action plan that a new personal care plan would be implemented and updated by 30 June 2013. We found that not all care plans were up to date as described within the provider's action plan. However, staff had been delegated to carry out this task and we saw that work was in progress.

We spoke with seven care workers and looked at training and supervision planning records. Staff told us that the morale had improved in the service since our last inspection. One staff member told us, 'I have at last had a supervision meeting and feel well supported by the management team we have now.' Staff also told us that they felt confident that their training and development needs would be supported.

During our inspection we observed that staff talked appropriately to people and knocked on people's bedroom doors before entering. This showed us that they respected people's privacy and dignity.

We found that care plans were not up to date which meant that care workers were not provided with the up to date information which would guide them with the information needed to understand people's current assessed needs.

We spoke with six care workers and looked at staff personnel files. We found that there was insufficient systems and processes in place to ensure that staff were properly trained, supervised and appraised. Staff were no provided with regular opportunities for their learning and development needs to be identified, managed and monitored based on the needs of people who used the service.

People told us they enjoyed the food. They said they liked the menu as it provided them with a variety of choices at meal times. One person told us, 'It is well cooked and nice and it's served warm. I like the puddings best.'

People were complementary about the staff. They told us their needs were met and they were well looked after. One person said, 'I can't complain they (care staff) do what I need and come quickly if I need them.'

We saw that people looked smart and well groomed which showed us their personal care needs were being attended to.

During our inspection we observed that the staff were attentive to people's needs and sought their agreement before providing any support or assistance.