Healey Lodge Residential 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 changed to requires improvement. This meant people did not always feel well-supported, cared for or treated with dignity and respect.

The provider was in breach of legal regulation in relation to how people were not supported in a person-centred way.

This service scored 55 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

People were not always treated with kindness, empathy and compassion. Although we witnessed many incidents of staff treating people well, we did notice occasions where people were distressed or asking for help and staff were either not present or did not respond to people. Staff tended to sit and chat with the same people and others were left to their own devices. It appeared to be the people that communicated less or became more distressed who were left alone. One relative spoke of an incident whereby their loved one was berated by a staff member publicly.

Other relatives praised the staff team and their comments included, “They take [person] to the bathroom and their dignity and privacy is respected” and, “I think the staff are continuously compassionate and caring.” Staff told us how they ensured people’s dignity was maintained. One staff member said, “People are treated good here. To maintain privacy and dignity we make sure curtains are closed during personal care, cover people up when dressing and sit down and talk to people. Staff are all very kind.”

The provider did not always treat people as individuals or make sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. Not everyone felt their preferences were met. One person said, “The males here tend to dominate the TV and there’s always sport on.” Some bedroom doors had signage on with people’s picture and name but not all bedroom doors were easily identifiable to people.

Staff told us people’s individual needs were met. One staff member said, “Some people have special dietary requirements. Some people eat a [Special] diet and this information is in the kitchen and people’s care plans.” Care plans held a record of people’s preferences including previous work history, likes and dislikes. Partners told us people were treated well. One partner said, “All the staff I interact with demonstrate their commitment to resident (people’s) care, safety and wellbeing.”

The nominated individual spoke of the importance of ensuring people were treated well and uniquely. They said, “Provision is made to support each resident
(person) and although the right support, right care, right culture document was produced for homes (caring for people) with learning disabilities, the concept is the same for everyone as everyone is unique and has their own preferences and ways of doing things regardless of who they are and this needs to be recognised and supported effectively.”

The provider did not always ensure people were engaged in regular activity. People told us activities took place but this wasn’t a regular occurrence. The activity calendar evidenced that not everyone was engaged in activity. The same people were taken out most days, and some people’s activity record was repetitive for example watching TV or listening to music. There appeared to be a lack of stimulation for some people. We did however witness group activities including bingo and arts and crafts but again, it appeared to be the same people involved. There was an activity calendar in place, however, this was not being followed and we saw no evidence of activities being carried out at the weekend.

Relatives told us people were encouraged to be independent. One relative said, “To encourage [person] they (staff) try to get [person] walking.” One person spoke positively of a recent trip to Blackpool. Staff told us they would verbally ask people what they would like to do. When we spoke to staff, the same people’s names were mentioned when asked about activity engagement. The nominated individual told us the service runs according to the principles of right support, right care and right culture and that people were encouraged to be as independent as possible.

Staff did not always respond to people’s needs in the moment or act to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress. Some relatives felt needs were not always responded to in a timely manner and concerns were raised about call bell sounds and lengths. One relative said, “All you can hear all day is doorbells and alarms. It is driving [person] crazy.” Other relatives felt there was a language barrier between staff and people.

Although we witnessed a staff presence in the service, there were times when people were asking for something and either staff were not in the room or did not engage well with the person. We observed 2 members of staff assisting 1 person from a wheelchair to a comfy chair with very little interaction. Staff told us how they would anticipate somebody’s needs who is nonverbal. They said, “We look for signs of distress or body language to anticipate needs. We know the residents (people using the service) well and they know us.”

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff, and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care. Staff told us they enjoyed working at this service and felt valued. One staff member said, “The (registered) manager and senior (staff) are amazing, there is no pressure put on staff, in fact I ask for more hours! The (registered) manager treats all staff well and is supportive if we ever have any concerns.”

The nominated individual told us staff are encouraged to talk to the (registered) manager and staff are regularly asked about their wellbeing. Appreciation certificates have been awarded to staff and the nominated individual and the registered manager were looking at other incentive schemes to introduce for the future.