Background to this inspection
Updated
2 April 2020
The inspection
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
Inspection team
This inspection was carried out by one inspector.
Service and service type
The Willows 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 had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.
Notice of inspection
This inspection was unannounced.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report.
During the inspection
We spoke with five people who used the service about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with four members of staff including the registered manager, senior care workers and the chef.
We reviewed a range of records. This included two people’s care records and we looked at one staff file in relation to recruitment. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.
After the inspection
We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records. We spoke with two professionals who regularly visit the service.
Updated
2 April 2020
About the service
The Willows Home provides accommodation and personal care for 12 older people, including people living with dementia. There were 9 people living at the service at the time of the inspection.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People felt safe and were cared for in a way that protected them from harm. Sufficient numbers of staff were deployed to meet people’s needs. People received their medicines when needed following robust procedures. People lived in a clean and hygienic environment and infection control measures were in place.
People’s needs were assessed prior to receiving care. Staff were trained to meet the varied needs of people and felt supported in their role. People’s nutritional needs were well supported and mealtimes were a sociable and friendly event. Staff worked in partnership with other health and social care professionals to meet people’s health needs in a timely way.
People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.
People felt that staff treated them in a caring manner that respected their dignity and promoted their independence. Staff demonstrated a passionate and committed approach to their role and ensured they listened to people’s views and opinions.
Care was regularly reviewed to ensure it responded to people’s changing needs. People’s social needs were met in an inclusive environment that supported people to be as active part of the home as they wished. People felt able to raise any concerns or complaints with management. Where people required support with their end of life needs, discussions took place.
Management led by example and ensured staff were clear about their roles and responsibilities. People and staff were very positive about the registered managers leadership and inclusiveness. Governance frameworks required some further development to ensure they were robust. The registered manager was aware of incidents they needed to report to CQC, and their responsibility under duty of candour.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
This service was registered with us on 08/03/2019 and this is the first inspection.
The last rating for this service was good (published 30 March 2018). Since this rating was awarded the registered provider of the service has changed name. As this was only a provider name change, we have used the previous rating to inform our planning and decisions about the rating at this inspection.
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.