Grafton Lodge

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

At our last assessment, staff had not always treated people with dignity and respect. At this assessment, we observed people were treated with dignity and respect.

People and relatives described staff as kind, caring, friendly, approachable and respectful. Staff knocked on doors before entering rooms, explaining care, and respecting people’s preferences. Relatives felt welcomed and supported and were given privacy when they visited their loved ones.

We observed a number of positive interactions throughout the inspection. Staff had an open, friendly rapport with people and staff knew people very well. Care provided was person centred, people were treated with respect and were supported to spend their time how the choose. Staff knew people’s personalities and preferences and were able to ensure people were comfortable and happy. When people needed privacy when they were in communal areas, privacy screens were used.

Relatives told us, “I would say staff are kind and caring. That is what has drawn us to the service. We see them engaging with the residents. We are very happy with it” “The staff are very kind and caring, and they have the correct skills to look after Mum” and “The staff are very kind and caring, especially with some of the residents who require more support.”

People told us, “Staff are kind and caring”, “The staff are nice and kind” and “Staff are caring.”

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.

We observed staff respecting people’s choices and treating people as individuals. Staff described helping people to maintain their skills and abilities and independence. For example, by enabling people to wash areas of their bodies they could reach and by loading toothpaste on to a brush to enable the person to clean their own teeth. People’s cultural and religious needs were not documented in care plans; however, staff told us people were supported to have visits from religious ministers/clergy if this was their wish. Staff told us some people went out to church services with their relatives. A relative told us, “If she wanted to access church, I am sure they would facilitate that.” We observed staff greeting a person in Arabic which helped the person feel comfortable and at ease.

People were enabled to maintain relationships with their friends and loved ones. We observed people receiving visits from their loved ones, they were given time and space and their privacy was respected. People were supported with telephone calls to and from friends and relatives, when and if they needed it. A person said, “The staff do help me stay in touch with family. I make most phone calls myself, although they have helped me with calls to the bank.”

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

Staff shared how they supported people to do things for themselves and gave reassurance and time for people to remain independent.

Staff recognised that people had rights which included rights for a private and family life. People were supported to maintain relationships. Some people went out with their family. A relative shared, how they took their loved one out in the car and spent time with their dogs. We observed that the garden was well maintained and there were places for people to sit in the sun or shade when the weather was nice to have private family time together. People told us how they had developed friendships with others living in the service which they valued greatly.

There were basic activities available for people. The activities schedule was on display in the hallway. Activities included, relaxation activities, exercises, bingo, art and craft, games and making food. We observed activities staff engaging people in an activity to prepare fruit cocktails, people appeared to enjoy the experience and enjoyed tasting the different fruits. Staff supported people to get involved through making chefs hats, there was lots of laughter, chat and encouragement. For people who chose to stay in their rooms or did not like to participate in group activities staff told us they made time to go in and chat to people. We observed people spending time reading books.

People told us they were supported with maintaining contact with their friends and relatives. A relative said, “We are always welcomed and made to feel comfortable when we visit. We are given privacy during visits."

Staff told us they would try and encourage people to come to the lounge or dining room so that they did not become isolated but respected their choices if they declined. Relatives said, “They celebrate, Valentine’s Day, Easter, Mother’s Day etc. Activities are really good. She enjoyed reading”, “They are so involved, it’s a family atmosphere. There are Christmas parties, summer parties, we come in for bingo on Mondays”, “They do a lot of traditional English activities, which is nice. They sometimes do takeaway nights, which are lovely”, “They do have enough activities for her to do, but she doesn’t like to get involved” and “She has colouring books that I’ve brought in, she doesn’t want to do much.” A person told us, “I did bingo yesterday and won. I did painting yesterday and I haven't done that in years.”

Staff did not always respond to people’s needs in the moment or act to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress. The provider listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes.

We observed call bells were answered quickly. However, needs were not always met in a timely manner. On the first day of our assessment, people had not been supported or encouraged to go to the toilet on a regular basis, this resulted in a number of people in the afternoon becoming incontinent whilst being in communal areas. Some people told us that sometimes they had to wait a long time to get support to go to the toilet. A person said, “You have to wait a long time for the toilet here. You can ask and 2 hours later you are still waiting.” Another person said, “I don't think there are enough staff. Look at what just happened [referring to people becoming incontinent in the lounge area], they don't have time to take us to the toilet.” This person also told us when they ask for support to go to the toilet staff say that you already went this morning. They said, “I can't help that. I hate asking for help to go to the toilet.” Despite this, most people felt their needs were met.

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

Staff told us they felt well supported by the registered manager. Staff told us the registered manager was responsive to requests around childcare and religious needs. Staff said, “I feel supported with my mental health”, “I can talk to the director and manager” and “They help me to meet my childcare arrangements.”