Westerley Residential Care Home for the Elderly - Woodhall Spa

On this page

• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

There was strong evidence to show staff worked with external health professionals to ensure people were supported to manage their health needs.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

We did not look at Assessing needs during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Effective.

We did not look at Delivering evidence-based care and treatment during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Effective.

People and their relatives told us they were extremely happy with both the way staff worked together to provide good care, and the way the staff worked with external health professionals. One relative told us they could see the improvements in the way staff worked together since the present manager had been in post. They told us they had spoken to one member of staff prior to this manager coming and they were very disillusioned with the way the service was run and how it affected the care people received. The relative said, “Now they (staff member) are back to their old bubbly self and this reflects on the care people get.”

Staff told us they were happy with the way the managers supported them and worked with them to provide good care. They felt they were given opportunities to further their training to widen their skills. The manager was able to give examples of how they worked with both the community nurses and the GP to support people. One initiative they had been working on with the community nurses was supporting staff to prevent pressure ulcers by providing a training programme called “React to Red.” This is a nationally recognised programme to promote staff knowledge and good practices around the reduction of pressure ulcers. Health professionals were happy with the way the staff and managers worked with them to provide good care for people. One health team member said, “Whenever clinicians offer suggestions or feedback based on observations during consultations, we feel listened to. They (staff) also follow up with our clinicians to confirm that any changes are working effectively and communicating any issues.”

There were clear processes in place to support staff learning, to ensure they had the right skills to support people. When people had any treatments or appointments with health care professionals these were recorded in their care records and information shared with staff to ensure good outcomes for people.

People we spoke with told us they were supported to attend health appointments when they needed to. Their relatives told us they were always kept informed about their family member’s health and how they were being supported. One person who was receiving respite care at the service, told us they had been well supported with their health needs whilst at the service. They told us they had seen the physiotherapist, community nurse and chiropodist since coming to the service. Where people needed support with their diet they were provided with it. One person told us, “The food is wonderful here.”

The manager told us how one person needed a specialist diet due to their risk of choking. They, the cook, and the person had put together a menu of foods the person enjoyed and they could eat safely to encourage the person to eat and enjoy their food. Staff were positive about how well people’s health needs were supported. They told us if people needed a GP or community nurse they were contacted quickly. If a person fell they knew how to support the person safely, when they needed to get medical support and what observations they should undertake to monitor people. There was positive feedback from external health professionals about supporting people to lead healthy lives. One external health team said, “We can confirm that the staff are diligent in ensuring residents receive their medication on time. Additionally, during visits, staff have observed that healthy meals are provided, and a variety of activities are regularly undertaken to promote well-being.”

There were clear processes in place to guide staff about how to support people to lead healthier lives. People were weighed regularly to ensure they maintained a healthy weight. There were policies and protocols in place to support staff. For example, to safely manage any falls people may have or how to safely admit or readmit people to the service. The policies and protocols were regularly reviewed to ensure they remained relevant.

We did not look at Monitoring and improving outcomes during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Effective.

We did not look at Consent to care and treatment during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Effective.