Elm House

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.

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

The provider had a detailed initial needs assessment form which was completed with people before they moved to the care home. This meant the provider had time to put care plans in place and ensure staff were able to meet the needs of each individual. The provider liaised with professionals and other providers involved in each person’s care, and the information they provided was recorded in the person’s individual care plan.

One relative told us, “I can’t praise them enough. I met the staff when they were in their previous home before they came here”.

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.

There were nationally recognised health and social care tools in place to measure indicators of a person’s wellbeing such as weight, diet, and skin integrity. The provider only used these tools for people if it was necessary to do so, but the tools were available in each person’s care plan in case they were needed. Staff received training in recording and reporting and demonstrated knowledge of how to do so effectively. This meant the provider was able to meet people’s needs if they changed over time and were able to look out for any signs a person’s needs may have changed.

One relative told us, “They support [person] with their eating and follow a plan from the dietician”. This showed staff followed care and treatment advice provided by professionals.

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.

Care plans contained hospital passport documents which contained key information about a person, including their preferences for care and treatment and their likes and dislikes. This meant the impact of having to go into hospital, or be in an unfamiliar healthcare environment, could be lessened for people.

Easy read documents were available for people so they could understand why different services were involved in their care, and to communicate any changes in their care.

The provider actively involved the person, and their wider care team, in creation and regular review of their individual person-centred care plan.

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.

Peoples’ care plans contained information about the activities they enjoyed and suggestions as how staff could support them to participate in those activities. This meant staff had access to information about how they could engage people in activities which were good for their physical and mental health. Each person had an individual activity plan, with a timetable of communal activities also being offered. This meant people always had opportunities to be engaged in doing something they enjoyed.

The provider offered a flexible food menu which contained multiple choices for each meal, with people being offered alternatives if they did not want to eat the main meals being cooked. The communal kitchen was accessible to everyone, meaning that people could cook independently or under the supervision of staff if they wished to.

One relative told us, “The menu is a healthy one and they have helped [person] to maintain a healthy lifestyle”.

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.

People’s care plans contained the question, “What are my expected outcomes?” This meant people were working towards goals which they had set themselves, rather than staff setting the goals for people.

Systems were in place to ensure clinical outcomes were measured, such as the use of diet and fluid charts. Staff recorded details of the food and drink a person had consumed if they required support and monitoring in this area. In another example, staff recorded the personal care tasks people had completed such as cleaning their teeth or having a shower, to ensure they were attending to their personal hygiene on a regular basis. The provider took a person-centred approach to measuring these outcomes and only measured them when the need was identified for them to do so. People were asked for their consent for staff to record these outcomes.

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

People’s care plans contained the question, ‘How do I want staff to support me to achieve my desired outcomes?’. This meant people were given control over the way their support was delivered, helping them to feel empowered. Consent forms which were specific to each area of people’s care were included in their care plans. Where people were unable to provide their consent, a mental capacity assessment and best interest decision had been completed to explain the rationale for any decisions taken on the person’s behalf.