Opal 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.

This is the first assessment for this newly registered service. This key question has been rated 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.

People's needs were assessed before and during their time at the service to help ensure care and support reflected their individual requirements, preferences and circumstances. People had detailed, person-centred support plans which described the support they required from staff and how they preferred this support to be provided. Care plans reflected people's physical health, mental health, emotional wellbeing and social needs, helping staff to deliver consistent and personalised care. Care plans were completed by experienced senior staff and leaders and were reviewed regularly to ensure they remained accurate and relevant. One example was people who had clear positive behaviour support plan (PBSP) in place to guide staff in how to support people when they showed signs of becoming distressed.

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. People received care and treatment that was based on assessed need, current best practice and professional guidance. Care plans included person-centred guidance for staff on delivering the best care possible in line with individual needs and preferences. Staff followed guidance provided by specialist professionals, one professional said, “The support provided straight from the beginning was personalised and communicated well to the person in a way that they could understand.”

The provider worked well across teams and services to support people. Staff began their shift with a handover from the previous shift, which ensured they were up to date about any concerns, appointments, or changes in people’s care. One staff member said, “There is effective handover on the system each day, this is day-night and it is great communication. You always know what is going on.” There were regular staff meetings, and the minutes were shared with all the staff team.

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. We saw evidence of positive outcomes for people living at the service. One person's health and wellbeing had improved significantly since moving into the home by supporting them to access the gym and eat healthily, resulting in the diagnosis of type 2 diabetes been reviewed. This person said, “I am going to the gym today, to complete exercises which I enjoy.” Relatives also agreed with this and told us "[Relative name] has lost loads of weight. They seem to be really happy there."

The provider routinely monitored people’s care and treatment to continuously improve it. They ensured that outcomes were positive and consistent.

People experienced positive outcomes because staff understood their individual preferences and aspirations and adapted support when required to help them achieve these. We saw examples where people's independence and wellbeing had improved since moving into the service including a person who was able to access the community, with staff shadowing them to increase their independence, this person said “I can request this support whenever I want it. I hope I may keep becoming more independent.”

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

Throughout our visit, we observed people being offered meaningful choices that reflected their individual needs, preferences and abilities. This included decisions about their daily routines, care and participation in activities. Staff took time to explain options in ways people could understand, enabling them to make informed decisions and maintain as much control as possible over their lives. This supported people's independence and ensured care was delivered in line with the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA).

Where people were assessed as lacking capacity to make specific decisions, decision-specific Mental Capacity Act (MCA) assessments had been completed and appropriately recorded. When individuals were unable to make certain decisions independently, the provider involved people, along with relevant professionals where appropriate, to ensure decisions were made in their best interests. Furthermore, the provider shared with us how they are planning to improve any mental capacity and best of interest decisions moving forward.