Nesbit House Care Home

Nesbit House is a residential care home providing nursing and personal care for up to 60 people. Peoples’ needs were varied and included those living with dementia or requiring nursing in bed. The service was arranged across three floors with one floor dedicated to people living with dementia. At the time of the inspection only two floors were in use and there were 26 people living in the service.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People told us they felt safe in the service. One person said, “I feel very safe because things are well organised here.” Without exception, relatives told us they felt their loved ones were safe. One relative said, “[Loved one] is undoubtably safe there. They were very good during COVID and locked down early.” Staff completed safeguarding training, and this was up to date. People received safe care and treatment, medicines and risks were both managed safely.

People and their relatives were involved in decisions about their care and their dignity and privacy was respected. People were encouraged to be independent. One person said, “I can make my own choices and get up when I want.” Another person said,” I am very much independent and can do what I like.”

The registered manager had an open-door policy and staff had a lot of confidence in the management team. One person said, “The manager is great. It is very well run and organised.” A relative said, “They have a good manager there, he will always make time for you. I would definitely recommend it.” There were robust quality assurance processes in place to monitor all aspects of the service.

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.

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 09/08/2019 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on timescales for unrated services.

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 COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

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.

We found the following examples of good practice.

¿ The registered manager had implemented procedures to minimise the risk of infection from visitors. Visits were by appointment and visitors were given personal protective equipment and had temperatures recorded. The registered manager had designated an empty bedroom as a visiting room. This room was accessible from the outside with no need to walk through the home. Full length glass provided physical separation and a two-way microphone had been installed on either side to aid communication.

¿ There was an admissions protocol being used covering admissions from different locations. People moving into Nesbit House from a hospital were required to have a negative COVID-19 test prior to discharge as well as evidence of seven days recorded clinical observations. New people moving in had a 14 day period of isolation in their room, minimising the risk of infection spread to other people.

¿ There were up to date infection prevention and control (IPC) policies and procedures, with posters and quick reference guides for staff. IPC audits were undertaken monthly within the home and action plans in place to address any concerns identified. The provider has employed a domestic compliance officer responsible for cleaning schedules and for monitoring IPC compliance within the home.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.