Archived: The Wimborne Care Home

The Wimborne Care Home is a residential care home providing accommodation and nursing care to 22 people aged 65 and over. At the time of our inspection two of these people were in hospital. The service can support up to 29 people. The first floor was accessed by a passenger lift or stairs with a stairlift if required. People had a communal dining room, lounge and conservatory which led out onto a level access garden.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

There was a lack of variety and availability of activities for people to enjoy. Although the organisation had a structured activities programme, this had not been implemented within the home. The registered manager told us they were looking to recruit another staff member to support and improve activities.

The home was due to start a programme of redecoration and renovation. This included painting the interior, creating designated storage space for equipment, replacing people’s carpets and repairing a wet room. This had followed feedback from residents and relatives and an internal health and safety audit.

People told us they felt safe living at The Wimborne Care Home. Staff understood the signs that could indicate a person was experiencing harm and abuse and knew how to raise concerns both internally and to external agencies if required.

People were supported to maintain their health and well-being via timely referral to relevant health care services such as GPs, district nurses and specialist dentists. Good oral health was encouraged and supported by staff.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. Refresher training was being provided to improve staff understanding of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) including best practice when completing mental capacity assessments and best interests decision paperwork.

People had personalised care plans which were regularly reviewed with their involvement and included their needs, abilities and preferences. Staff knew people well which supported good care and meaningful interactions.

People were supported and encouraged to maintain contact with friends and family. Relatives told us they were made to feel welcome, were involved in their family member’s care and could visit freely. Annual surveys gave people the opportunity to influence developments at the home.

The registered manager was seen as supportive, approachable and actively encouraging of staff professional development. Support to the registered manager was provided by a new deputy manager and a regional support manager who visited the home on a weekly basis.

A variety of team meetings were used as a forum to discuss people's changing needs, reflect on practice and share learning.

People were supported by staff who enjoyed working at the home. One staff member told us, “I love the staff here, we're a team.”

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 6 May 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Wimborne Care Home provides accommodation and nursing care to up to 26 elderly people with dementia. There were 16 bedrooms on the first floor 14 of which were en-suite. Two people shared a bathroom which was situated between their rooms. The first floor was accessed by a passenger lift or two sets of stairs. There were 14 en-suite bedrooms on the ground floor. A hair salon was also situated on the ground floor. The staff room, administrators and managers office were all on the second floor. The kitchen and laundry were on the ground floor. People had a communal dining room, lounge and conservatory which led out into a level access garden which had recently been landscaped.

The service had a registered manager in place. 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.

The registered manager had a good awareness of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) and training records showed that staff had received training in Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DOLS). The service completed capacity assessments and recorded best interest decisions. This ensured that people were not at risk of decisions being made which may not be in their best interest. Staff also had a good understanding of the principles linked to MCA.

People and staff told us that the service was safe. Staff were able to tell us how they would report and recognise signs of abuse and told us they had received safeguarding training. We reviewed the training records which confirmed this.

Care plans were in place which detailed the care and support people needed to remain safe whilst having control and making choices about how they lived their lives. Each person had a care file which also included guidelines to make sure staff supported people in a way they preferred. Risk assessments were completed, regularly reviewed and up to date.

Medicines were managed safely, securely stored, correctly recorded and only administered by registered nurses. Medicine Administration Records (MAR) reviewed showed no gaps. This told us that people were receiving their medicines as prescribed.

Staff had a good knowledge of people’s support needs and received regular mandatory training as well as training specific to their roles for example, pressure area care and dementia.

Staff told us they received regular supervisions which were carried out by management. We reviewed records which confirmed this. Competency assessments on staff were also carried out to ensure safe practice and reflective learning took place.

People were supported to maintain healthy balanced diets. Food was home cooked using fresh ingredients and people said that they enjoyed it. Food options reflected people’s likes, dislikes and dietary requirements. Diabetic dessert choices were being reviewed and improved by the registered manager, a dietician and the chef.

People were supported to access healthcare appointments as and when required and staff followed professional’s advice when supporting people with ongoing care needs.

People told us that staff were caring. We observed positive interactions between staff and people throughout the inspection. This showed us that people felt comfortable with staff supporting them.

Staff treated people in a dignified manner. Staff had a good understanding of people’s likes, dislikes, interests and communication needs. Information was available to people. This meant that people were supported by staff who knew them well.

There was system in place for recording complaints which captured the detail and evidenced steps taken to address them. People and relatives told us that that they felt able to raise concerns or complaints and felt that these would be acted upon. This demonstrated that the service was open to people’s comments and acted promptly when concerns were raised.

Staff had a good understanding of their roles and responsibilities. Information was shared with staff so that they had a good understanding of what was expected from them.

People and staff felt that the service was well led. The registered manager and others in the management team all encouraged an open working environment. All the management had good relationships with people and all worked shifts with staff.

The service understood its reporting responsibilities to CQC and other regulatory bodies and provided information in a timely way.

Quality monitoring audits were completed by the management team and provider visits were carried out by the area manager. The registered manager reviewed incident reports and analysed them to identify trends and/or learning which was then shared. This showed that there were good monitoring systems in place to ensure safe quality care and support was provided to people.