Orchard Manor 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.

This is the first assessment for this service. This key question has been rated Good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

This service scored 70 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

We received only positive feedback from people about the staff. We were told they showed kindness, empathy, and compassion, and respected people’s privacy and dignity.

We observed that when staff interacted with people, they were kind and caring. Some staff members were seen sitting and chatting with different people throughout the day or were very engaging in general with people. People were unanimous in their feedback that they felt the staff were kind and caring. We were told, “They are very respectful. It’s not a put on thing”, “If they do anything, they are doing it in privacy. They don’t talk out loud about anything personal” and “Of course they do (always treat me with respect).” This was reiterated by the response we had from relatives, who told us, “The staff treat mum with respect and dignity….. she truly believes they are her friends”, “All of the caring staff who look after mum are kind and compassionate” and “The staff are lovely.”

However, we fed back to the registered manager of 2 occasions when we felt staff were dismissive of people’s needs and views. Immediately following our feedback the registered manager held supervision sessions with staff to remind them of the importance of always treating people with respect and dignity and taking their views and feedback seriously.

Staff treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences.

People were encouraged to retain their sense of identity as staff supported them to do so. For example, 1 person liked to spend some days in their pyjamas and dressing gown, another person’s appearance was very important to them, and they reflected through their own style of clothes and shoes. A third person was only comfortable with certain staff supporting them with their personal care, and the staff provided this.

People told us that living at Orchard Manor Care Home had had a positive impact on them. One person said, “I think it has as life is a lot easier here, especially in my wheelchair. I can get about easily which I couldn’t before” and another told us, “I reckon so as I’m happy here. They’re a good bunch of people.” We saw photographs of people displayed in communal areas within the service which gave a homely feel to the environment.

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

People were encouraged to choose how they wished to spend their time, with some people opting to remain in their room and others sitting in the lounge, joining in on activities and taking part in outings. People told us, “They (staff) know me well”, “They leave a lot to you. They get all the clothes out in the morning that you need. I’m independent” and “If you do something like having a wash, you can say I don’t need help and they leave me to it.”

People told us they had a choice of foods at mealtimes, and they could help themselves to the snacks, and fruit that were available in communal areas. One person said, “You usually have two choices but you can always have a salad too. If you’re thirsty you can get a drink. There are always packets of crisps and bananas you can have.”

One person made their own hot drinks when they wished, and another person had a flask of hot chocolate made so they could drink it when they wished in the comfort of their own room during the evening. A third person helped cut vegetables, stack the dishwasher and clean work areas with the staff. This all helped to ensure people still had the ability to make their own decisions and choices yet continue performing day to day tasks.

Staff 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.

We observed a staff member chatting and providing assurances to 1 person when they were upset. They sang a nursery rhyme to the person and the person responded saying, “I was feeling very fed up but you have cheered me up.”

People told us their needs were met with 1 telling us, “They’re pretty good and quick” and another saying, “They don’t keep you waiting, they are there.” A relative commented, “The carers always know my mum’s preferences as well.”

The provider did not always care about and promote the wellbeing of their staff to enable staff to always deliver person-centred care. Although 1 staff member told us, “It’s good here. There is nice teamwork,” the most recent staff survey indicated that some staff felt senior management did not listen to them. They reported that while their immediate managers were supportive and responsive to their concerns, the provider did not address the issues they raised about staffing levels during both day and night shifts. Staff raised concerns with us that they felt they could not provide the care they wished to because of the staffing arrangements.

However, the registered manager had previously worked as a member of staff and said, “I know what it’s like to be a carer so I understand that the work is hard at times.” They also took staff well-being into account when planning staff rotas telling us, “Staff do long shifts, but they work 3 days on and 3 days off.” This was confirmed by staff.