Freeland House Nursing Home

Updated 1 December 2018

The inspection:

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team:

The inspection team consisted of two inspectors and two Experts by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type:

Freeland House is a care home registered to provide accommodation and nursing or personal care. 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.

Notice of inspection:

This inspection was unannounced and took place on 30 October 2018. One inspector returned on 1 November 2018 to complete the inspection and to provide feedback.

What we did:

Before the inspection we reviewed the information we held about the service and the service provider. The registered provider completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We looked at the notifications we had received for this service. Notifications are information about important events the service is required to send us by law.

During the inspection we observed how staff interacted with people. We spoke with 12 people, 4 relatives and one professional to gather their views. We looked at records, which included five people’s care and medicines records. We checked recruitment, training and supervision records for four staff. We looked at a range of records about how the service was managed. We also spoke with the director, the registered manager, one nurse, two senior care staff, three care staff, activities coordinator and the chef.

After the inspection we contacted number of external health and social care professionals and commissioners to obtain their views about the service.

Updated 1 December 2018

What life is like for people using this service:

People received compassionate support from kind and committed staff. People complimented the support received and told us they formed meaningful, caring relationships with the staff. Staff knew what was important to people and ensured people had support that met their needs and choices. People’s dignity, confidentiality and privacy were respected and their independence was promoted.

People received support that met their needs and was in line with care plans and good practice. People’s rights to make own decisions were respected. People were supported to maintain good diet and access health services when required.

The registered manager ensured people received safe care and treatment. People complimented the continuity of care provided by skilled and competent staff. People received their medicines safely and as prescribed. Risks to people’s well-being were assessed, recorded and updated when people’s circumstances changed. The staff ensured any lessons learnt were reflected to improve the service delivery.

The service was well run by the registered manager who was supported by a team of committed staff. The provider’s quality assurance processes were effective and there was a focus on continuous improvement. Where an area for improvement had been identified there was a prompt action taken to address it.

People, staff and relatives were involved and felt listened to. The team at Freeland House worked well in partnership with other agencies, social and health professionals and external organisations.

Rating at last inspection:

This was our first inspection of this service since they de-registered under the new provider.

About the service:

Freeland House is a care home. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a 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 can provide accommodation and care to 65 people. At the time of the inspection 45 people lived there.

Why we inspected:

This was a planned, routine inspection.

Follow up:

We will monitor all information received about the service to understand any risks that may arise and to ensure the next planned inspection is scheduled accordingly.

More information is in Detailed Findings below.