Thornton House Residential Home

On this page

• Overview
• Person-centred Care
• Care provision, Integration and continuity
• Providing Information
• Listening to and involving people
• Equity in access
• Equity in experiences and outcomes
• Planning for the future

Responsive – this means we looked for evidence that the provider met people’s needs.

At our last assessment we rated this key question requires improvement. At this assessment the rating has changed to good. This meant people’s needs were met through good organisation and delivery.

This service scored 71 (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 made sure people were at the centre of their care and treatment choices and they decided, in partnership with people, how to respond to any relevant changes in people’s needs.

People were involved in developing their care and support plans wherever possible. People’s needs, choices and preferences were identified and recorded. One person told us, “I choose when I go to bed and get up.”

Care and treatment were reviewed regularly to ensure any changes required were made in a timely way.

The provider understood the diverse health and care needs of people and their local communities, so care was joined-up, flexible and supported choice and continuity.

People had access and were supported to attend appointments with other services when required, such as GPs and hospitals. One person told us, “I have never actually needed the Doctor, but I know staff would arrange this for me if I did.”

The provider supplied appropriate, accurate and up-to-date information in formats that were tailored to individual needs.

Information was provided to people in a way which they understood. For people who required it, an advocate was used to help support people to understand information about their care and to help them express their views and wishes.

A pictorial menu board was in place to help people choose from the options on offer. Newsletters in large letter format were also displayed in the home to let people know of any significant events for the month, such as a new member of staff joining the home or a birthday celebration.

The provider made it easy for people to share feedback and ideas, or raise complaints about their care, treatment and support. Staff involved people in decisions about their care and told them what had changed as a result.

People knew how to give feedback about their care and support and could do so in a range of ways, such as feedback questionaries and resident meetings. However, both meetings for people and surveys were quite infrequent. The manager told us they were looking to make meetings more regular.

Although people told us they had no cause to complain, they felt confident that if they ever needed to do so, their concerns would be taken seriously and responded to. One person commented, “If I had a problem I can get it sorted.”

The provider made sure that people could access the care, support and treatment they needed when they needed it.

People’s care records evidenced people accessed support from external professionals when required. Staff adapted their support accordingly when people’s needs had changed.

Staff and leaders actively listened to information about people who are most likely to experience inequality in experience or outcomes and tailored their care, support and treatment in response to this.

Reasonable adjustments were made and action taken to remove barriers when people found it hard or challenging to use or access services. Where required, staff acted as an advocate to other health professionals for people who wanted additional support.

Planning for the future Score: 2

We could not be fully assured people were supported to plan for important life changes, so they could have enough time to make informed decisions about their future, including at the end of their life.

The care plans we looked at did not contain details which adequately captured people’s end of life wishes.

For one person who had a DNA CPR in place, their end-of-life care plan simply read ‘Liaise with nephew when the time comes.’

We could not be assured the provider had properly recognised and considered people’s values and wishes and how these may influence decisions about their end-of-life care. This is particularly important for people with a DNA CPR in place, to help ensure people had a pain free, sensitive and dignified death.