Daleside Nursing 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. At our last assessment we rated this key question requires improvement. At this assessment the rating has remained requires improvement. This meant people did not always feel well-supported, cared for or treated with dignity and respect.

This service scored 55 (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 did not always ensure people were treated with kindness, empathy and compassion, or respect their privacy and dignity. Some people told us they felt rushed when being assisted with personal care and felt some staff had a more caring approach than others. Comments included, “Most of them are ok, and take their time, but some can rush you a bit” and “Some staff come and spend time with you, some just do their job and leave.” One person told us staff did not always fully close their curtains when assisting them. We observed staff were very busy, particularly in the morning time, and did not always pause to effectively listen to what people were trying to tell them. For example, we observed a person was visibly confused and trying to tell a staff member they wanted their watch to be laid next to their mother’s grave. The staff member spoke kindly to the person but then proceeded to put the watch on the person’s wrist and moved on to assist another person. However, we also observed a staff member promptly responded to a person’s care needs. This was done with discretion, empathy and compassion. We shared our all our observations and people’s feedback with the management team.

The provider did not always treat people as individuals or make sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. For example, a person told us they received assistance to wash but would like a shower each day as this was their preferred routine prior to moving to the service. They said they were not given the opportunity to take a shower daily. This feedback was shared with the management team who told us they would immediately review the persons preferred routines with them. However, another person told us they could get up and go to be whenever they chose. We received generally positive feedback about the food, however a person told us they could not choose from the planned menu. They commented, “No, I just get certain food put in front of me. There is no choice.” Care plans had improved since our last assessment and better reflected people’s personal preferences. Assessment was underway for a person currently cared for in bed for a new wheelchair to enable then to participate in social and leisure events. People were no longer sharing bedrooms so everybody had their own personal space which they could personalise as they chose.

People were not always supported with meaningful activities to ensure their social need were fully met. People had the equipment they needed to encourage them to be as independent as they could. Care plans reflected areas of independence. Family members confirmed they visited frequently, and no restrictions were placed upon them. One family member commented, “Yes I can come and go whenever, never have any problem.” At our last assessment we identified a lack of leisure activities which was having a negative impact on some people’s wellbeing. At this assessment, we saw examples of some activities which had taken place such as entertainers visiting, celebrations and commemorations of key events and festivities, however limited activities were observed during our visit. We observed long periods when people were asleep in their armchairs and the only entertainment available was watching TV or listening to music. Activities were planned on a board in the hallway but the planned activities on the days of our visits did not always take place.

Staff did not always respond to people’s needs in the moment or act to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress. A person told us, “They come quite quickly if I ring my bell,” however, another person said, “They don’t listen to you, they say they will come back in 2 minutes and still waiting [a significant period of time] later.” A family member added, “When [Name] needs changing it can take a long time for staff to come in after pressing bell.” We monitored the response times during our visit and found staff did respond quickly; however, one person told us “It’s because you [The CQC] are here.” We shared this feedback with the manager and were provided with evidence there was a system in place to monitor call response times at different time of the day.

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff. We observed staff taking breaks throughout our assessment. The provider had appropriate policies and procedures in place to support workplace wellbeing including flexible working arrangements. Staff told us they felt supported, listened to and valued. The provider was in the process of refurbishing the staff room area for staff to take their break.