We carried out a review of the data available to us about South Africa Lodge on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about South Africa Lodge, you can give feedback on this service.
South Africa Lodge is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care for people with complex needs, specialising in supporting people with a neurological condition. The service can support up to 99 people who live in one of six individual units or ‘lodges.’ There were 99 people at the home when we inspected.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People and relatives were happy with the care provided and spoke positively about the staff.
Although people received their medicine as prescribed, some records including medicine care plans and ‘as and when required’(PRN) medicine plans, lacked detail. Immediate action was taken by the management team to address this.
People's care plans and risk assessments contained consistent and detailed information in relation to people’s needs and how these should be managed. People’s health needs and wellbeing were monitored in line with the information highlighted in their care plans and risk assessments.
Environmental risks had been considered and acted on where required. Infection, prevention and control processes and up to date policies were in place. The provider, management and staff adhered to the latest government guidance in relation to infection, prevention and control.
Recruitment practices were effective and there were sufficient numbers of staff available to meet people's needs in a safe and unhurried way. People were protected from avoidable harm and abuse.
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.
Staff had received appropriate training and support to enable them to carry out their role safely. They received regular supervision to help develop their skills and support them in their role.
People’s needs were met in a personalised way. Staff knew the people they supported well and had a good understanding of their needs. People were supported to partake in a range of activities centred around their individual interests.
The service worked in partnership with other agencies to aid joined up, person centred care.
Effective and robust quality assurance systems had been developed and implemented to continually assess, monitor and improve the quality of care people received.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
South Africa Lodge registered with us on 2 November 2020. In May 2021 we completed a focused inspection of the service looking at the safe, effective and well led domains only (published 24 May 2021). All these areas were rated good; however, the service could not be given an overall rated as the responsive and caring domains were not inspected.
The last overall rating for the service under the previous provider was good (published 28 December 2019).
Why we inspected
The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about people's care and support including falls risks, nutrition, neglect, lack of sufficient staffing and poor infection, prevention and control practices. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.
We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from these concerns.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.
South Africa Lodge is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care for people with complex needs, specialising in supporting people with a neurological condition. The service can support up to 99 people who live in one of six individual units or “lodges”. There were 89 people at the home when we inspected.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
We received positive feedback from people’s friends and relatives. One relative wrote, “I cannot speak highly enough of South Africa Lodge and the care our Mum received…staff showed her such love and care I was moved beyond what simply words can convey.” Another relative told us, “When we were clapping for all the nurses (during the COVID-19 pandemic) I actually wasn't clapping for the nurses. I was clapping for the carers at South Africa Lodge who were doing such a great job and looking after my [relative] so well. In the darkest hour they still continued to do a wonderful thing.”
We found people were safe and protected from avoidable harm and abuse. The provider supported people in a way that kept them and their belongings safe and secure. There were sufficient numbers of staff, and systems were in place to prevent and control the spread of infection, and to manage medicines safely.
People’s care and support were effective. People had good outcomes. Relatives’ feedback about the effectiveness of the service was consistently good. 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.
The service was consistently well managed and led. The leadership and culture promoted high-quality, person-centred care. There was an open, transparent and empowering culture with a focus on continuous improvement.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the Care Quality Commission (CQC) website at www.cqc.org.uk.
Rating at last inspection
This service was registered with us on 2 November 2020 and this is the first inspection.
The last rating for the service under the previous provider was good (published 28 December 2019).
Why we inspected
The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about people’s care and support including falls risks, nutrition, choice and restrictions on mobility. We decided to inspect and examine those risks. We undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe, effective, and well-led.
We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from these concerns. Please see the safe, effective and well-led sections of this report.
We reviewed the information we held about the service. No areas of concern were identified in the other key questions. We therefore did not inspect them. As the key questions caring and responsive have not been inspected under the current provider we cannot give an overall rating based on this inspection alone.
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.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection under the previous provider, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for South Africa Lodge on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
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.