Winterfell Care Home

On this page

• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

Effective – this means we looked for evidence that people’s care, treatment and support achieved good outcomes and promoted a good quality of life, based on best available evidence.

At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained good.

This meant people’s outcomes were consistently good, and people’s feedback confirmed this.

This service scored 75 (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’s care and treatment was effective by assessing and reviewing their health, care, wellbeing and communication needs with them.

People’s needs were assessed prior to and during their time at the service, with a clear focus on understanding the complexities associated with individuals' health conditions. Assessments were holistic and person-centred, considering physical health, emotional wellbeing, cognitive function, and social circumstances. Staff used a range of tools and approaches to gather relevant information, adapting their methods to ensure people were able to participate meaningfully in the process. Care plans were clear in identifying how best to support people living at the service. For example, one person’s care plans specified how they like to be supported with personal care and included preferred toiletries. People had communication care plans which were detailed and explained to staff how best to communicate with each person living at the service, taking into consideration changes that have occurred during the time that they have resided at Winterfell Care Home.

Where individuals lacked capacity, assessments were carried out in line with legal frameworks, including the Mental Capacity Act (2005), and involved relevant people to ensure decisions reflected people’s best interests. The service demonstrated a proactive approach to identifying and responding to changing needs, with regular reviews and multidisciplinary input contributing to care that was responsive, coordinated, and tailored to each person. This ensured people received support that was appropriate.

The provider planned and delivered people’s care and treatment with them, including what was important and mattered to them. People’s care, treatment and support was delivered in line with relevant legislation, national standards and evidence-based good practice guidance.

The manager and staff team knew people well and we saw they had a positive relationship with them. This enabled the staff team to support people in a person-centred way following good practice guidelines. Incidents and accidents, such as falls were reviewed, and an analysis was completed to determine any themes or trends. This meant actions and best practice guidance could be implemented in a timely manner to ensure people received effective care and treatment.

Staff used specialist tools to help identify and reduce health risks, such as pressure sores and poor nutrition These specialist tools enabled staff to assess people, take early action, when required and keep people safe and well.

The provider worked well across teams and services to support people. They made sure people only needed to tell their story once by sharing their assessment of needs when people moved between different services. This was done by a one-page profile, containing important information regarding each person. This could be shared for example with the ambulance service if someone was being taken to hospital.

Staff were proactive in working with other services when multidisciplinary involvement was required, and any actions were followed up on, as needed. Nurses visited daily to support people. A nurse visited during our inspection who appeared to have a good relationship with staff.

Records were kept of when health professionals visited, and what advice they gave people. For example, we saw evidence of notes recorded from a GP ward round. Any updates and changes were shared with management to action.

All the people we spoke with felt confident staff would contact the correct professional when needed.

The provider supported people to manage their health and wellbeing to maximise their independence, choice and control. Staff supported people to live healthier lives and where possible, reduce their future needs for care and support.

The service identified risks to people’s health and wellbeing and prioritised support to prevent deterioration as much as possible. For example, one person wished to access the community, but it was not in their best interests to do so alone. Staff provided one to one support for this individual, meaning they were supported to access the community, as they had done prior to residing at Winterfell Care Home. Thus, supporting and maximising their independence and well-being.

The provider routinely monitored people’s care and treatment to continuously improve it. The service sought and considered feedback from people, their families, carers, professionals and stakeholders as appropriate when monitoring individual outcomes. People we spoke with told us that if they had raised concerns with staff, they had been resolved. They had confidence that the management would take action if they raised concerns in the future.

There was a robust approach to monitoring the effectiveness of people’s care, treatment and support, and action was taken to continuously improve it. We observed this through the means of care plan reviews, audits and meetings carried out at Winterfell Care Home.

The provider told people about their rights around consent and respected these when delivering person-centred care and treatment.

People were supported to give informed consent to their care and treatment, with staff demonstrating a clear understanding of the legal and ethical principles involved. One staff member told us consent to care and treatment included, “ensuring our residents have ability to make safe decisions and if a person lacks capacity we make decisions in their best interests.”

Consent was sought in a way that respected each person’s communication needs, using approaches to ensure understanding and participation. Where individuals had capacity, staff engaged them in meaningful discussions about their care, promoting autonomy and choice. In cases where people were assessed as lacking capacity, decisions were made in accordance with the Mental Capacity Act (2005), with appropriate involvement from families, advocates, and professionals to ensure actions were in the person’s best interests. Records showed that consent was consistently documented and reviewed, and staff received training around mental capacity to support good practice.