Eden House

Eden House is a residential care home providing personal care to up to 53 people. The service provides support to older people, some of whom were living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 50 people using the service.

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

Eden House was exceptionally well led and caring. The provider continued to deliver outstanding care. People, relatives, staff and professionals gave especially positive feedback about the care and compassion management and staff showed. The provider's vision and values placed people, relatives and staff at the heart of the service. Staff were enthusiastic and motivated to go above and beyond to meet people's needs and wishes.

An enthusiastic and dedicated management team led the home with compassion and respect. The home had an extremely positive ethos, with people, relatives, staff and health professionals describing the home in exceptional terms. People and relatives felt their views were valued and listened to. The management team similarly valued this feedback and used it to enhance people’s care.

Staff knew how to identify and report safeguarding concerns. Potential concerns had been referred to the local authority and investigated. Management also investigated incidents and accidents and acted to help keep people safe. The home was clean and tidy throughout. There were enough staff to meet people’s needs and new staff were recruited safely. Medicines were administered safely.

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

The last rating for this service was good (published 17 October 2017).

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.

Eden House Residential Home provides personal care and accommodation for up to 53 people over three floors. The service was supporting 51 people at the time of this inspection. The home has a residential unit on the ground floor to accommodate 27 people and a unit on the first floor called ‘The Grace Unit’ to accommodate 26 people who are living with dementia. The second floor contained a hairdressing salon with nail bar and staff rest rooms.

The service had a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

At our last inspection we rated the service as outstanding in effective, caring, responsive and well led. At this inspection we found they remained outstanding in caring. We identified minor shortfalls in people’s care plans, the service no longer had staff champions in place and the provider’s quality assurance system was not fully embedded. We took these issues into account when deciding upon the ratings for this service at this inspection.

Staff were extremely caring in their approach ensuring people were at the forefront of their work. Staff were motivated and offered kindness, empathy and supported people to maintain links and ties with friends and family. Staff used inclusive methods of communication which were tailored to the needs of the people who lived at the home. The service had a strong, visible, person centred culture which was evident through the actions of the manager and staff. The service provided good end of life care that had a positive impact on people and their relatives at difficult and upsetting times. Staff discussed interventions with people before providing any support. Independence was promoted where ever possible. Advocacy services were advertised in the foyer of the service, accessible to people and visitors.

Risks to people and the environment were assessed and regularly reviewed and control measures were in place to mitigate against identified risk. Accidents and incidents were recorded and analysed to identify trends or themes.

Medicines were administered using an electronic system by trained staff that had their competencies to administer medicines checked regularly. Medicine audits were completed regularly. Policies and procedures were in place for safe handling of medicines for staff to refer to for information and guidance.

There were robust and thorough recruitment processes in place with all necessary checks completed before staff commenced employment.

The provider used a dependency tool to ascertain staffing levels which was reviewed regularly to ensure appropriate levels of staff were deployed in the home to ensure the safe delivery of care. People wore pendants to summon assistance with staff carrying pagers to enable them to respond in a timely manner.

There were systems in place to keep people safe. We found staff were aware of safeguarding and whistleblowing processes and how to raise concerns if they felt people were at risk of abuse or poor care practices. Accidents and incidents were recorded and monitored as part of the manager’s audit process.

The provider ensured appropriate health and safety checks were completed. We found up to date certificates to reflect fire inspections, gas safety checks, and portable appliance testing were in place.

A business continuity plan was in place to ensure staff had information and guidance in case of an emergency. An emergency grab bag containing equipment and information for staff in case of an emergency was available to staff; this included people’s up to date Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans

The provider used an electronic monitoring system for recording staff training, allowing staff to access their own training platforms whilst at work or at home using a secure password. The provider used a ‘Train the trainer’ programme to ensure staff had immediate access to support and guidance from their peers. Staff felt the training allowed them to provide effective care and support and told us they enjoyed the training. Staff training was up to date. Staff received regular supervision and an annual appraisal allowing for concerns, issue, ideas for improvement in practice to be discussed. Opportunities were available for staff to discuss future performance and development.

People’s nutritional needs were rigorously assessed and we observed people enjoying a varied diet, with choices offered and alternatives available. Staff supported people with eating and drinking in a safe, dignified and respectful manner providing prompts and encouragement. The provider used innovative methods to provide attractive food for people requiring specialised diets. The chef demonstrated an extensive level of knowledge regarding people’s nutritional needs.

People were supported to maintain good health and had access to healthcare professionals when necessary and were supported with health and well-being appointments. Staff understood the importance of identifying changes in people’s health and well-being to ensure prompt referrals to the appropriate professional.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People had access to spacious communal areas with more intimate seating areas available. The furniture and fittings were of a high specification and laid out in an informal manner. Corridors were wide to accommodate mobility equipment. Outside, people had access to well-kept enclosed gardens with a range of seating, and areas to walk. Some bedrooms on the ground floor had direct access to the gardens.

People had access to the internet, using computers which were available on both the ground and first floor. There was an integrated music system in the home allowing people to listen to music in their rooms, including the bathrooms.

The service had two types of care plans in place due to the transition to HC One from the previous provider. We found care plans were being rewritten on a rolling programme. Plans were personalised focussing on people's assessed needs. Plans were reviewed and evaluated regularly.

The provider had an activity planner with a range of different activities and leisure opportunities available for people. The well-being coordinator worked closely with people to ensure activities were personalised to meet people’s interests.

People, relatives and staff felt the manager was open and approachable. The provider had an effective quality assurance process in place to ensure the quality of the care provided was monitored. People and relatives views and opinions were sought and used in the monitoring of the service. Processes and systems were in place to manage complaints.