Stocks Hall Nursing Home - Burscough

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 good. At this assessment the rating has remained 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.

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

There were assessments of people’s needs which reflected a wide range of health and social care and support needs, such as communication and mobility. The registered manager reviewed these regularly. People told us staff knew their needs well, and felt confident their needs would be met. Staff had easy access to people’s care plans and had enough time to read and digest them to understand what support was required. People and their relatives said they were involved in planning their care, although some people and relatives said they were unsure whether they had been involved in care reviews. Staff maintained clear and person-centred records of their daily care and routines.

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 service used nationally recognised assessment tools to determine people’s needs and risks to their health. For example, ways to assess people's risk of weight loss and risk to the health of their skin. The registered manager made sure people’s dietary needs were assessed and care plans adhered to. Care staff and kitchen staff had good knowledge about how to prepare people’s drinks and meals to minimise the risk of choking, and written information contained detailed guidance. We observed meals that were pureed during the assessment, and they were presented in an appetising manner. Staff supported people who remained in bed during the day to eat and drink, although commented that mealtimes could feel pressured, as there were several people that required support in their rooms. Staff recorded how much fluid and food people took on during the day so this could be monitored for any concerns.

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.

The staff team worked well together, and handovers were effective and documented for each person. Staff made referrals to external agencies such as dieticians, speech and language, and continence teams. People and their relatives said they were kept up to date following health appointments, and said staff responded quickly if they needed a GP appointment. Care plans could be accessed easily by health professionals, and any visits were documented in daily notes and handovers. People had hospital passports which were ‘at a glance’ documents to advise hospital staff about people’s needs and preferences.

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.

All meals were prepared freshly on site, and there were hot meal options for breakfast, lunch and dinner. People said they could choose different options to what was on the menu. The food was healthy and met people’s dietary requirements and prepared to a high standard.

The service employed several activities co-ordinators who supported people to be involved in activities and light exercise. People were supported to go for walks where possible in the local community. We observed the home playing music and people and staff dancing. It was very hot weather during the assessment and staff offered extra water and ice pops on the top floor where it was particularly hot.

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 monitored and documented different aspects of people’s health and wellbeing. For example, where people were at risk of weight loss, staff monitored people’s weight, food and fluid intake. Staff monitored the health of people’s skin and looked out for any redness and took action when required.

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

Staff completed Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) training, and there was an appropriate consent policy in place. We saw detailed MCA assessments and best interests’ decision in people’s records, and people signed consent forms around consent to care, support for medicines, and taking photographs. Staff understood the principles of consent, and we saw staff talking to people and explaining what they were doing during their care tasks.