Chester Lodge Care Home

Updated 1 March 2023

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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

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

This inspection was carried out by 2 inspectors.

Service and service type

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

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 9 people who used the service and 4 people's relatives to gain their feedback about the service. We spoke with 9 staff including the registered manager, 2 nurses, senior carer, chef, care and auxiliary staff.

We reviewed a range of records. This included 6 people's care records and samples of medicine records and daily and associated records of their care including care plans and risk assessments. We looked at 4 staff records and a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including audits and procedures. 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.

Updated 1 March 2023

About the service

Chester Lodge is a care home providing personal and nursing care for up to 40 older people in one adapted building. At the time of our inspection there were 37 people using the service.

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

People were supported by kind and caring staff who had been safely recruited. Staff had received training for their roles and had their competency assessed.

People were protected from the risk of abuse. Staff had received training and understood how to keep people safe. They told us they felt confident to raise any concerns and believed they would be promptly acted upon. Safeguarding policies and procedures were in place.

There was a clear and robust procedure in place for the administration of people’s medicines. The management of ‘as required’ medicines was clear and consistent records were in place. The provider had policies, procedures and guidance in place to support staff when administering medicines.

Care plans and risk assessments included sufficient information to reflect people’s individual needs and preferences. They were reviewed regularly and updated each time people’s needs changed.

The staff and management team worked closely with health and social care professionals to ensure the best outcomes for people.

Safety checks of the premises and equipment had been undertaken. All areas of the service were clean and well maintained. People had personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEPs) in place.

Improvements had been made in the governance systems. The management team identified and promptly addressed any areas identified for development and improvement.

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.

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 and update

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 20 April 2022) and there were breaches of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve.

At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

This inspection was carried out to follow up on action we told the provider to take at the last inspection.

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.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.

The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good based on the findings of this inspection.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Chester Lodge Care Home on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

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