Greenways

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

Caring – this means we looked for evidence that the provider involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.

At our last assessment we rated this key question Requires Improvement. At this assessment the rating has changed to Good.

This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

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 always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

We observed caring and compassionate interactions between people and staff. It was evident staff knew people and their needs and preferences well. The registered manager told us, “The whole team are excellent.” The deputy manager added, “70% of the staff have worked with people for years. Their passion kicks in because of how long they’ve been here and building that relationship with families too.”

Relatives echoed this. One relative told us, “They are very kind and caring. They’re excellent. They welcome you, look after you and keep you informed. Couldn’t ask for anything better.” Another said, “He’s been there a long time. They treat him like a prince and like one of their own. They adore him.” Another confirmed staff respected people’s privacy as they had observed them knocking on people’s doors before entering their rooms.

Staff had supported a person through a time of grief when losing a family member close to them. Their relative said, “Staff put photos up of his [family member] in his room. He passed away 4 years ago. Also put his [family member’s] guitar up on his wall. He was supported to the funeral with 2 care staff, who were very good.”

A member of staff had been made a dignity champion, meaning they were responsible for encouraging high levels of dignity in the service through observations, training and implementation of strategies. The deputy manager told us, “They would observe how staff were communicating with people and if there were any issues they would feedback to me – nothing has come back yet.”

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

Staff ensured people were supported to celebrate their birthdays with people who were important to them. We observed records and pictures of people enjoying small parties at the service with their friends and families, with decorations that were of their preference.

Staff also supported people to maintain relationships that were individually important to them. One relative told us, “They bring [person] down to me every month and he stays with me for a weekend.” The relative confirmed if they felt that they wanted staff to pick their family member up early for any reason, they would feel comfortable ringing the home and confident they would.

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

The kitchen had multiple illustrated audio squares on the wall which when pressed would say the name of the food and drink shown on it. This allowed people who were non-verbal to make independent decisions on what they would like to eat and drink. Staff told us if a food or drink item was not available, they would remove that audio square to ensure people did not become disappointed at requesting it and it not being available. There was also a menu plan displayed in the kitchen. Staff told us this could be changed depending on people’s preferences on the day. A relative confirmed, “They encourage her to cook, and she makes her own breakfast. She does her bed and lays her clothes out that she wants to wear.”

People were encouraged to take part in activities daily. However, people were able to decline if they wished and stay home instead. A relative confirmed, “They give him choices and options. They leave him to it and don’t force him to do something he doesn’t want to do.”

The provider listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff responded to people’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

Staff knew people well and were able to identify non-verbal cues in which people would communicate their needs. For example, we observed 1 person stand up suddenly from the sofa and turn to look at their keyworker. The staff member knew the person was communicated they needed to go to the toilet, and they were supported to do this immediately.

Relatives felt staff were quick to respond if people’s health needs changed. A relative confirmed, “Staff are very responsive and quick to get him appointments with doctors if needed.” This ensured people received the acute health care they required.

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

We observed humour and kindness between staff of all levels. The registered manager told us, “We’ve had a lot of team meetings and team building since the last inspection. We’ve got them onboard with making changes. We do an annual BBQ. I try and get as many of the staff to go to Centre Parcs as possible with the residents as its nice for them too. We’re all human so there are disagreements, but we keep upbeat.” They also confirmed that staff were involved in the in-house activities with people. For example, staff had been encouraged to make their own tie-dye t-shirts with people. This allowed them to be fully engaged as well as adding a friendly competition between staff to make the ‘best’ t-shirt.