Homewood Care Home

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

Caring – this means we looked for evidence that the provider involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.

At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

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 always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

We observed staff spending time with people. We saw staff communicating with people in the person's preferred way and engaging them in meaningful activities.

When a person became upset, we observed staff support the person to maintain their dignity and treated the person with compassion and kindness. The service had a lot of rooms people could use whenever they wished, this meant people could choose to spend time together but also had space to be alone. People were supported to maintain their dignity, for example people were encouraged to take their dressing gown to the bathroom when showering.

People’s relatives confirmed staff treated people with kindness and respect. Comments included, “They are kind and caring. She is treated respectfully and she likes the staff” and “You can tell he's happy there and with the staff. They share a lot of happy banter.”

Comments from health and social care professionals included, “The staff seem knowledgeable and compassionate to (people) and are a good advocate for them” and “During my visits, I have had the opportunity to observe interactions between staff and residents. These interactions were consistently positive and demonstrated a caring, empathetic, and person-centred approach. Residents appeared confident and comfortable in approaching staff for support, which reflects the trusting relationships that have been established.”

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

People's initial assessment explored their individual needs, family connections, hobbies, interests and what mattered to them including any goals for the future. This information was reflected in peoples care plans and was regularly reviewed and updated where required. Staff had knowledge of individuals unique backgrounds and their strengths.

We saw people had individually tailored transitions into the service. A person’s relative told us, “It was first just respite…It was supposed to be temporary, but he decided he wanted to stay there.”

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

We saw people led fulfilled lives. They were supported to access day services and the wider community and participated in meaningful activities.

Peoples’ support plans included the desired outcome for individuals and included ways to enable them to maintain or increase their independence. People were involved in the running of their home and had agreed responsibilities, for example helping staff complete equipment and facility checks and tests.

People could choose what time they got up and what time they went to bed, when and what to eat and drink. We saw a person choose to do a puzzle and staff interacting with them, joining in when the person requested but not completing the puzzle for them. The service involved people and their relatives to support the person to maintain their hobbies and develop daily living skills.

A person’s relative told us, “They help encourage his independence. He's always helping. He likes helping…He doesn't have to.” Another person’s relative told us, “He's left to do his personal care by himself. He will lock the door. They support his independence in this way and treat him with dignity and respect.”

The provider listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff responded to people’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

People's care plans contained important information about people's medical conditions. People were supported to obtain medical advice, treatment and reviews where needed. Staff had a thorough understanding of people's medical needs and arranged reviews with appropriate health care professionals. Staff were able to describe the signs of a person's health condition deteriorating and could describe the action they would take in response.

Health and social care professionals confirmed the service was responsive to people’s needs. Their comments included, “Staff clearly place a strong emphasis on residents’ health and wellbeing and were observed to seek appropriate external support in a timely and proactive manner when required” and “Staff are always very pro-active if there is a concern between appointments.”

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

The retention of staff was good. Staff told us they felt supported by the leadership team and that the whole team looked out for each other and offered each other support when needed. Staff said they received time off to attend medical appointments. There was an employee assist programme in place. Staff told us they felt valued and supported.

Staff feedback informed us there was a strong culture of kindness in the team, with everyone working together to make sure people felt valued and respected. Team meetings and handovers focused on improving care.