Hallgarth Care Home

Updated 16 November 2019

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

This inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

Hallgarth is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 11 people who used the service and six relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with the registered manager, the regional manager, the clinical lead, one senior care assistant, four care assistants, two members of kitchen staff, one of the housekeepers, the administrator and the activities co-ordinator. We spoke with two health professionals who were visiting the service.

We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us.

We reviewed a range of records. This included five people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at four staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at information relating to fire drills.

Updated 16 November 2019

Hallgarth is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care to 54 people aged 65 and over at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to 60 people.

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

People felt safe and were happy living there. There were enough staff to meet people's needs. Medicines were managed effectively. Staff followed infection prevention and control guidelines. The service was clean and tidy. Risks to people were identified and managed.

Staff sought people's consent before providing care and support. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service support this practice. Staff training in key areas was up to date.

People were treated with kindness and compassion. Staff respected people's privacy and dignity and people were supported to be as independent as possible. Staff had built positive and caring relationships with people and their families.

People received personalised care that was responsive to their needs and preferences. Staff knew people's needs well. People and relatives knew how to make a complaint. Complaints were handled appropriately. People had access to a range of activities which reduced the risk of isolation.

There were effective systems in place to monitor the quality of the care provided. People's feedback was sought regularly and acted upon. We received positive feedback about how the service was managed.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 25 April 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.