Amber Court Residential Care Home

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 assessment we rated this key question requires improvement. At this assessment the rating has changed to good. This meant people’s outcomes were consistently good, and people’s feedback confirmed this.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The provider made sure people’s care and treatment was effective by assessing and reviewing their health, care, wellbeing and communication needs with them.

People’s needs were assessed prior to them moving into the home and the management team developed care plans and risk assessments to ensure people’s needs were met. Where possible people and their family members were involved in the assessments. Where new needs were identified on assessment, relatives told us the staff team acted quickly to address any concerns and sought advice from relevant professionals. One relative said, “[Person] was discharged with a pressure sore no one knew about, the home have got the cream form the GP and been great.”

The provider 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 staff and management team worked alongside other professionals to ensure people’s care was supported by current best practice guidance. Some people were supported by the staff team to work towards returning home, feedback about this was positive. A visiting healthcare professional told us, “I feel the home is more onboard now with the principles of rehabilitation and we work hard to get people discharged back home. I have no concerns about the service at all.”

The provider worked well across teams and services to support people. They made sure people only needed to tell their story once by sharing their assessment of needs when people moved between different services.

Communication with partner agencies had improved and feedback was positive. One visiting healthcare professionals told us, “I have been coming for more than 4 years and the home and staff have definitely improved. I advise the staff of what exercises people need to do, they listen and perform them with the resident and record them in the plan. When I come back the next week, it may be a different member of staff, but they know all the information. I am happy that the staff communicate well with each other.”

The provider had established communication systems which ensured the staff team were kept updated about people’s support needs and any changes to their health or wellbeing.

The provider supported people to manage their health and wellbeing to maximise their independence, choice and control. Staff supported people to live healthier lives and where possible, reduce their future needs for care and support.

People were supported to take part in activities for their wellbeing. One person told us, “‘I like to spend time in my room, I like watching TV and knitting, 1 of the staff gets my wool.” Another person said, “When I first came here, they wouldn’t let me outside on my own. I told them I needed to go out and get fresh air. I talked to the manager and now I do go outside, I just let them know I’m going. There are not too many activities, but I like to join in when the dancing and exercise is on.”

There were mixed opinions about the food quality and choice, however we observed people had a choice of meals, which looked appetising and were supported where needed. One person said, “I am a vegetarian and the chef has taken a special interest to make sure I don’t get bored with the same foods.”

People explained how they had access to the GP, optician and dentist services when required. Records we reviewed confirmed this.

The provider routinely monitored people’s care and treatment to continuously improve it. They ensured that outcomes were positive and consistent, and that they met both clinical expectations and the expectations of people themselves.

Staff recorded information that was essential for the monitoring of people’s health and well-being. This included food and fluid intake, people’s weights, to ensure there were no significant changes, and repositioning to reduce the risk of skin damage. These observations and records enabled staff and the management team to take timely action where there were changes to people’s health or well-being. Care plans were then updated to ensure support was provided that met people’s current needs.

The provider told people about their rights around consent and respected these when delivering person-centred care and treatment.

Staff sought people’s consent before providing care and support. One person told us, “The staff know how I like things done, they are alright, 1 staff member always comes into my room and gives me a high five, on a good day we have a double high five, I like it.” Staff had received training in the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and told us how they took people’s views into account. One staff member commented, “We always ask for consent. We ask residents what they want and respect their wishes.”

Where people lacked capacity to make specific decisions, formal processes were in place, involving relevant professionals and relatives to ensure decisions were made in their best interests.