Background to this inspection
Updated
24 February 2022
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.
As part of CQC’s response to care homes with outbreaks of COVID-19, we are conducting reviews to ensure that the Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) practice is safe and that services are compliant with IPC measures. This was a targeted inspection looking at the IPC practices the provider has in place. We also asked the provider about any staffing pressures the service was experiencing and whether this was having an impact on the service.
This inspection took place on 28 January 2022 and was announced. We gave the service 24 hours' notice of the inspection.
Updated
24 February 2022
About the service
Denison House is residential care home providing personal and nursing care to 27 people aged 65 and over at the time of the inspection; some of whom were living with dementia. The service can support up to 31 people.
Accommodation was provided over two floors; the majority were single rooms although couples could share if requested.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People, relatives and staff felt there were positive changes taking place and the registered manager was listening to their views and opinions. There was evidence of improvement around leadership, oversight and management within the service.
People felt safe and well looked after. All areas were clean, tidy and there was sufficient cleaning taking place to keep people safe from the risk of infection. Relatives said they were confident that staff provided good care in a safe way.
Care plans and risk assessments were in place for people's support needs. These had improved in quality since our last inspection and covered people's health conditions. Families confirmed that they were able to contribute their views on their relative’s care and support.
The assessment, monitoring and mitigation of risk towards people who used the service had improved. The registered manager carried out regular checks and analysis of falls and incidents to ensure learning from events was undertaken. This meant risks to people's health and safety were reduced.
People received their medicines on time and when they needed them. Improvements had been made to the recording of the application of topical medicines, such as external creams and ointments. Staff had positive links with healthcare professionals which promoted people’s wellbeing.
Staffing levels had improved and staff were patient, kind and respectful towards people. Care was more person-centred and staff had time to talk with people during the day.
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 supported this practice.
A registered manager had come into post since the last inspection. They were making positive changes to the service and people, staff and relatives spoke highly of them.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the Care Quality Commission (CQC) website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection (and update)
The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 10 September 2019) and there were two breaches of regulation.
At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.
Why we inspected
We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection of this service on 10 July 2019. Two breaches of legal requirement were found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve quality assurance and cleanliness as part of their governance of the service.
We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Safe and Well-led, which contain those requirements.
We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to coronavirus and other infection outbreaks effectively.
The ratings from the previous comprehensive inspection for those key questions not looked at on this occasion were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection. The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Denison House on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
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.