Euxton Park Care Home

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• 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 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.

The provider always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

People were treated with kindness, compassion and respect by staff who demonstrated a person-centred approach to care. During our inspection, we observed staff knocking on people's doors before entering their rooms, which promoted privacy and respected people's personal space.

Staff consistently sought people's consent before providing support and care. We heard staff asking for consent during interactions, and people told us that staff always asked for their permission before carrying out any aspect of care. This demonstrated that staff respected people's choices and involved them in decisions about their support.

Relatives said staff took appropriate steps to maintain people's privacy and dignity. Family members said they were asked to leave their relative's room when personal care was being provided, ensuring people were afforded privacy during intimate care and support.

We observed positive and respectful interactions throughout the service. Staff addressed people using their preferred names and communicated in a warm, patient and dignified manner. Conversations were friendly and engaging, and staff took time to listen and respond to people's needs and preferences.

People were supported sensitively during mealtimes. We observed staff regularly checking on people's wellbeing and asking whether they required any assistance with their meals. This helped people to remain comfortable while maintaining as much independence as possible.

Feedback from relatives reflected a caring and inclusive culture within the service. One relative said, "Absolutely, the staff are caring. The cleaners will chat with [relative] and ask if [relative] has everything he needs. Everyone I meet has been welcoming and helpful; it is a nice atmosphere." This demonstrated that kindness and compassion were embedded throughout the service and were evident across all staff groups.

During the inspection, we also discussed with the provider the use of "NBM" (nil by mouth) signs displayed on some people's bedroom doors. Whilst these signs were intended to promote people's safety, we highlighted that displaying this information publicly could compromise people's privacy and dignity by making personal health information visible to others. The provider was receptive to this feedback and said they would review the current practice and explore alternative methods of communicating essential clinical information to staff whilst maintaining people's dignity and confidentiality.

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

People's feedback about choice was mixed. Some people said they could choose when to get up and go to bed, while others said they were not always offered choices about food or activities. A relative said, “The staff know him well they know his likes and dislikes and they ask what he wants and encourage him, it is like him being back home with the family.”

Staff knew people well, and we observed positive interactions that reflected this. People's bedrooms were personalised with photographs and belongings important to them, and care records included information about people's individual needs.

The provider did not always promote people’s independence, so people did not always know their rights and have choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

People were supported to make choices about aspects of their daily lives; however, feedback indicated that there were occasions when people experienced delays in receiving support, which impacted their sense of independence and control.

Some people did not always have a choice about when they got up in the morning and felt dependent on staff availability. One person said, “I just have to wait.” Another person said, “I don't have a choice about when I get up, today I will be here until half past 11.” These comments indicated that people's preferred routines were not always achieved in a timely manner.

People also described delays when requesting support. One person said staff took “an extraordinary amount of time to come and help me, well over 10 minutes sometimes.” We noted that while people were generally positive about the staff, they recognised the pressures staff were working under. One person commented, “Staff are wonderful, but they are always rushing.”

Despite these comments, people were being offered choices throughout the day. Staff asked people where they would like to eat their meals and if they wished to participate in activities. This demonstrated that staff involved people in decisions about their day-to-day lives and respected their individual preferences.

A range of activities was available, and people were supported to decide if they wanted to take part. People were encouraged to make choices that reflected their interests and preferences.

Some people raised concerns about their environment, with one person telling us their television was not working, which limited their ability to access a preferred pastime independently. The provider was actioning the TV problems.

Feedback about staff was otherwise positive, and people consistently described staff as caring and supportive. The comments received suggested that whilst staff treated people well and promoted choice where possible, staffing pressures and response times could at times impact people's ability to exercise full choice and control over aspects of their daily routines.

The provider 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.

Staff knew people well which meant they could identify any changes quickly and take appropriate action. Staff responded to people’s requests for assistance in a timely manner. A person said, “I have to wait sometimes for staff to come, this can be up to 10 mins” and another said, “I don’t push my buzzer during mealtimes as no staff will come they are too busy.” Staff were observed supporting people promptly during mealtimes. Relatives felt confident concerns would be addressed quickly. A relative said, “They answer the door quickly and if I ask them to help, they come quickly. If [relative] accidently stands on the pressure mat, they come quickly.”

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff, and supported and enabled staff to deliver person-centred care.

Staff felt listened to most of the time and found managers approachable and supportive. However, they said frequent management changes over recent years had sometimes been unsettling and created uncertainty.

Despite this, staff felt the changes had generally improved the service. For example, they spoke positively about the introduction of an online care planning system, which made records easier to access and maintain.

The provider supported staff development through ‘Champion’ roles in areas such as infection prevention and control and safeguarding. Staff enjoyed these roles and valued the additional training, which enabled them to share knowledge and support colleagues.

The provider also offered further career development opportunities. Some staff had completed the Care Home Assistant Practitioner programme, which provides experienced care workers with enhanced clinical and leadership skills, helping to bridge the gap between care assistant and registered nurse roles. This showed that the provider was committed to staff development