21 December 2015
During a routine inspection
A registered manager was in post at the time of our inspection. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
People received care from staff in ways which promoted their safety. Staff knew how to protect people from harm and supported people to do the things that they enjoyed and to keep in touch with friends in a safe way. People, relatives and staff discussed the risks people faced and action was taken to protect people. Relatives and staff told us there were enough staff to care for people in a safe way. Some people liked the independence that looking after their own medicines gave them. Other people needed staff to help them with their medicines.
Staff had undertaken a wide range of training based on the needs of individual people so that they could support people well. Staff were supported through regular supervision, and told us that if they had any concerns for people’s well-being they were able to get advice from senior staff or the registered manager. People’s consent was appropriately obtained by staff and staff understood that people had the right to make their own decisions. Staff worked with other organisations to make sure that they were protecting people’s freedom and rights.
People’s health and nutritional needs were understood by staff. Staff knew how to support people if they required any specialist help and if they had any particular dietary needs. Staff supported people to obtain specialist help with their health so they remained well.
Staff found out about things that were important to the people they cared for, so they could provide support in the best way for people. People and relatives liked the staff who supported them. People and relatives were encouraged to tell staff how they wanted their care to be given. People’s privacy and dignity were respected and staff recognised when people’s independence increased. People were supported by staff to do the things that they enjoyed.
We saw that people’s care was personalised and individual ways of working with people had been agreed. Relatives told us they were encouraged to take part in care planning and reviews, so their family members would receive care in the best way for them. Relatives were confident that any concerns or complaints they may need to raise would be actioned by staff.
Relatives told us communication with the registered manager was open. Staff told us that they were supported well by the registered manager and provider, so that they were able to provide safe and compassionate care. People’s care and the quality of the service was regularly reviewed and checked by the registered manager and the provider so they could be sure people were receiving the right care.