Waverley House

Updated 13 April 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:

This inspection visit was carried out by one adult social care inspector and a specialist advisor who was a registered nurse.

Service and service type:

Waverley House is a 'care home.' People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that 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:

This was an unannounced inspection.

What we did:

Before the inspection, we completed a planning tool to inform the inspection visit. We reviewed information we held about the service. This included previous inspection reports and notifications submitted by the provider relating to incidents, accidents, health and safety and safeguarding concerns which affect the health and wellbeing of people who used the service. We also spoke with Herefordshire Council and Healthwatch. Healthwatch is a national independent champion for people who use healthcare services. This allowed us to gain information relating to the quality and safety of service being provided. We used this information to develop our inspection plan.

During the inspection we spoke with 14 people, eight relatives and a visiting health professional. Because not all people could verbally communicate with us, we carried out a short observational framework for inspection (SOFI). SOFI helps us understand the experiences of people who are unable to communicate with us.

We spoke with three members of care staff, the deputy manager, the registered manager, a cook, a laundry assistant, the maintenance person, an activities coordinator and two nurses.

We looked at a variety of records. This included care records related to five people who used the service. We also looked at information related to the management of the service. This included quality audits, records of accidents, incidents and complaints. We did this to ensure the registered manager had oversight of the service and to ensure the service was appropriately managed.

As part of the inspection process we walked around the building to carry out a visual check. We did this to ensure the home was clean, hygienic and a safe place for people to live.

Updated 13 April 2019

About the service:

Waverley House is a residential home that was providing personal and nursing care to 41 people aged 65 and over at the time of the inspection.

People’s experience of using this service:

People told us they felt safe. However, we found the home was not always safe. Staff were not consistently deployed to meet people’s needs in a timely manner. We have made a recommendation about this.

Risks within the environment were not always suitably managed in a timely manner. We have made a recommendation about this.

We received mixed feedback about the quality and choice of food at the home. The registered manager confirmed they were actively addressing these concerns. We have made a recommendation about this.

We saw complaints and concerns were actively addressed. However, systems for monitoring complaints were not consistent. We have made a recommendation about this.

The registered provider had a comprehensive auditing system, however we noted this had failed to identify concerns within the environment. We have made a recommendation about this.

Staff received training relevant to their role and said they were supported by the management team at Waverley House.

Consent was recorded in people’s care files and relevant deprivation of liberty applications had been submitted. 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 in the service supported this practice.

People and relatives told us Waverley House was a nice place to live. It was repeatedly described as a “home from home”.

People told us their privacy, dignity, rights and needs were respected. Care plans reflected people’s individual care needs and how these could be met. A variety of activities were available to people.

People, relatives and staff told us the service was well-led and praised the registered manager and deputy manager for their support within the home. We saw people and relatives were encouraged to express their views and influence how the home was managed.

Rating at last inspection: Good (21 April 2016)

Why we inspected:

This was a planned and scheduled inspection.

Follow up:

The next scheduled inspection will be in keeping with the overall rating. We will continue to monitor information we receive from and about the service. We may inspect sooner if we receive concerning information about the service.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk