Archived: Westwood Lodge

Updated 23 June 2021

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by two inspectors and an Expert by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

Westwood Lodge is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

We gave a short period notice of the inspection to discuss the safety of people, staff and inspectors with reference to COVID-19.

What we did before the inspection

The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made our judgements in this report.

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. This included details about incidents the provider must notify us about. We sought feedback from the local authority commissioning team and health care professionals who work with the service. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with five people who used the service and four relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with seven members of staff including the registered manager, nurses, activity co-ordinator and care workers. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us.

We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records and six people’s medication records. We looked at three staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data, care plan information and quality assurance records.

Updated 23 June 2021

About the service

Westwood Lodge is a purpose-built home with three units, which provides nursing and personal care for up to 76 people; two units are part of the main building, with one adjacent unit. All rooms are for single use. The home is situated in its own grounds and has gardens with car parking spaces at the front of the home. At the time of the inspection, 56 people were using the service.

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

Medicines were managed safely, however there were some discrepancies in the recording documentation for some people. We have made a recommendation in relation to the management of people's medicines.

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.

There were sufficient numbers of trained staff to support people safely. Recruitment processes were robust and helped to ensure staff were appropriate to work with vulnerable people.

People's needs were assessed before starting with the service. People and their relatives, where appropriate, had been involved in the care planning process. Staff had awareness of safeguarding and knew how to raise concerns. Steps were taken to minimise risk where possible.

Staff were competent and had the skills and knowledge to enable them to support people safely and effectively. Staff received the training and support they needed to carry out their roles effectively. Staff received regular supervisions.

Staff worked with other agencies to provide consistent, effective and timely care.

We observed many caring and positive interactions between staff and people throughout the inspection. Staff had formed genuine relationships with people and knew them well and were seen to be consistently caring and respectful towards people and their wishes.

The premises were homely and well maintained. We observed a relaxed atmosphere throughout the home.

The service had an open and supportive culture. There was evidence of improvement and learning from any actions identified. Staff spoke positively about the management team.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection (and update)

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 24 December 2019).The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection enough improvement had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service on 22 October 2019. A breach of legal requirements was found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve safe care and treatment.

We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Safe and Well-led which contain those requirements.

The ratings from the previous comprehensive inspection for those key questions not looked at on this occasion were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection. The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

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, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Westwood 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.