Elm House

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.

At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

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

Staff knew people well and we saw kind and caring interactions between staff and people during the inspection. Staff understood that Elm House was people’s home and had created a warm and inclusive atmosphere. Peoplereceivedkind and compassionatecare from staff who used positive and respectful language which people understood and responded well to. People felt valued by staff who showed genuine interest in their well-being and quality of life.

People and staff had held an event where people discussed and indicated what dignity meant to them. People had made a ‘dignity tree’ which was a large picture of a tree and, with the support of staff, had placed notes on the branches about what dignity meant to them. We asked staff what ensuring dignity meant to them and a staff member commented, “I make sure I know about the person and that is through reading their files and getting to know them. Treating them with dignity and respect. Making sure they are safe and happy.”

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 felt listened to and valued by staff. People were given time to listen, process information and respond to staff and other professionals. Staffknew people well and took the time to understand people’s individual communication styles and develop a rapport with them. Staff respected people’s choices and wherever possible, accommodated their wishes, including those relevant to protected characteristics, for example, due to cultural or religious preferences. The Compliance Mentor told us, “In terms of diversity, we do organise cultural events, such as cultural foods and we involve staff as well. We have a large mix of nationalities (living and working at Elm House), we talk about different cultures and experiences and have events.”

People, and those important to them, took part in making decisions and the planning of their care and risk assessments. Staff supported people to maintain links with those that are important to them.

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

People had the opportunity to try new experiences, develop new skills and gain independence. People, where they wanted to, were supported to go on holiday each year. People were consulted on where they wanted to go and collaborated on planning the trips. Staff knew when people needed their space and privacy and respected this. A relative said, “Staff will prompt [person] but will try to give him independence where they can.”

People were fully involved in planning their care and what they wanted to do each day. Staff knew people well and understood their likes and dislikes. There were weekly general activities plans which people had helped create and people took part if they wanted to. People also had individual activities plans. People told staff what they wanted to do during conversations with their keyworkers and from discussions with relatives. One person loved reading, and staff had set up a system where when they were close to finishing a book, they would tell staff and ask them to order another. Another person had been supported to attend a weekly cycling club. Some people attended a day centre. On the day of the inspection, 3 people had gone to the day centre. On their return, people were smiling and chatting with staff about their day. One person told us, “I like Sundays because I go shopping!” However, 1 relative said they felt that whilst there were some activities, there could be more activities offered for the person to take part in.

Staff understood the importance of supporting people to maintain contact with family and friends. During the inspection. we observed a person who was supported to have regular visits from their relative. The service ensured activities were arranged around the visits, and we saw staff greeting the relative warmly when they arrived and, throughout their visit. We also saw people were able to have privacy during visits and staff ensured this.

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 and recognised if there were any changes in a person’s physical health or mental health. They were also able to understand behaviours that could mean a person was feeling unwell. Staff knew how to refer any healthcare concerns quickly and ensure people were supported to access appropriate care and support. During the inspection we observed a person requesting a dental appointment and communicating to staff how they felt. Staff reassured the person and said they would help them book a dental appointment that day.

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

The home had staff champions for different areas of care such as infection control, activities, medication and fire. These champions were responsible for each area and received extra training which they could then train others in during staff meetings. This helped support staff development and confidence and improved their ability to understand and deliver person centred care.

Staff were positive around the support they received during supervision and there was a section in these meetings to discuss the staff members’ wellbeing and any support they needed. The provider also recognised staff achievements and there had recently been an event to recognise staff contribution and accomplishments. The Compliance Mentor also said, “I am open to anything whether positive or negative, I take it on board so we can create a healthy relationship. It’s about communication and involvement. We do check how staff feel about any incidents, debrief and the new staff are able to talk about how it went and get support.”