The Avenue Nursing Home

The Avenue is a care home providing personal and nursing care for up to 64 people. At the time of our inspection there were 47 people using the service. The Avenue is a purpose-built home and accommodates people over two floors. People living on the ground floor require support with personal care needs, some are living with early onset of dementia. The first floor supports people with more complex needs including people living with dementia.

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

People were not always safe as medicines were not always managed safely. The systems and processes in place were not robust enough and had not identified the issues found on inspection.

People had person centred care records and received person centred care which reflected their needs. Environmental safety checks were completed and certification in date. The service was clean and hygienic and had robust cleaning schedules and dedicated housekeeping teams. Staff followed correct infection prevention and control practices. The service was adequately staffed and had received appropriate checks prior to employment to maintain the safety of people in the service.

People’s nutritional needs were met. The service had been adapted to meet the needs of people living with dementia which included a vast range of dementia friendly technological aids and equipment. Staff received a thorough induction and continued training programme during employment, and there was enough staff to meet the assessed needs of people. There was an abundance of activities planned for both in and out of the service.

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

People were treated with dignity and respect by a consistent care staff team. People were encouraged to be as independent as possible by care staff who were kind, caring and compassionate.

People were supported to keep in touch with their family and friends through video and phone calls and indoor or outdoor visits. People had access to healthcare services. People and relatives were overwhelming positive about the service provided.

There was consistent and effective leadership from the registered manager and an effective governance structure which meant the service was appropriately monitored at manager and provider level.

The registered manager and provider were responsive to the inspection findings and feedback and took immediate action during and after the inspection to improve some systems and remedy some concerns raised.

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 25 October 2109 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service. Please see the safe section of the report.

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 see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of this full report.

Enforcement and Recommendations

We have identified a breach in relation to the safe management of medicines at this inspection.

Follow up

We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.