Archived: Middle West Care Home

Updated 20 July 2015

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 7 May 2015 and was unannounced. The inspection team consisted of two inspectors.

Before the inspection, we reviewed all the information we held about the provider. We contacted the local authority commissioning and safeguarding team to ask them for their views on the service and if they had any concerns. The provider had not been sent a PIR before the inspection, the PIR is a form that asks the provider to give some information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

We used a number of different methods to help us understand the experiences of people who used the service. We spoke with three people, two members of staff, the registered manager, an independent advocate (an advocate can help you express your needs and wishes, and weigh up and take decisions about the options available to you. They can help you find services, make sure correct procedures are followed and challenge decisions made by councils or other organisations) and the nominated individual.

We spent time observing care and support being provided. We read four people’s care plans and other records which related to the management of the service such as training records and policies and procedures.

Middle West Care Home had not been inspected before as it was newly registered in February 2015.

Updated 20 July 2015

Middle West is a residential home which provides care and accommodation for up to four adults with moderate learning difficulties, autism and display behaviours that may challenge others. The home, which is a detached bungalow, is located in Smallfield. On the day of our inspection four people were living in the home.

This inspection took place on 7 May 2015 and was unannounced.

The home was run by a registered manager, who was present on the day of the inspection visit. ‘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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

Staff had written information about risks to people and how to manage these. We found the registered manager considered additional risks to people in relation to community activities and changes had been reflected in people’s care plans.

Staff had received training in safeguarding adults and were able to evidence to us they knew the procedures to follow should they have any concerns. One staff member said they would report any concerns to the registered manager. They knew of types of abuse and where to find contact numbers for the local safeguarding team if they needed to raise concerns.

Care was provided to people by a sufficient number of staff who were appropriately trained. Staff were seen to support people to keep them safe. People did not have to wait to be assisted.

People who may harm themselves or displayed behaviour that challenged others had shown a reduction of incidents since being at the home and the number of staff on duty were adequate for their individual needs.

Processes were in place in relation to the correct storage and audit of people’s medicines. All of the medicines were administered and disposed of in a safe way.

Staff were aware of the home’s contingency plan, if events occurred that stopped the service running. They explained actions that they would take in any event to keep people safe. The premises provided were safe to use for their intended purpose.

The Care Quality commission (CQC) monitors the operation of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLs) which applies to care homes. The registered manager and staff explained their understanding of their responsibilities of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and DoLS and what they needed to do should someone lack capacity or need to be restricted.

People were provided with homemade, freshly cooked meals each day and facilities were available for staff to make or offer people snacks at any time during the day or night. We were told by the registered manager that people could go out for lunch if they wished.

People were treated with kindness, compassion and respect. Staff took time to speak with the people who they supported. We observed positive interactions and it was evident people enjoyed talking to staff. People were able to see their friends and families as they wanted and there were no restrictions on when people could visit the home.

People took part in community activities on a daily basis; for example trips to the shops. The choice of activities was specific to each person and had been identified through the assessment process and the regular house meetings held.

People had an individual care plans, detailing the support they needed and how they wanted this to be provided. We read in the care plans that staff ensured people had access to healthcare professionals when they needed. For example, the doctor, learning disablement team or the optician.

The registered manager told us how they were involved in the day to day running of the home People felt the management of the home was approachable.

Complaint procedures were up to date and people and relatives told us they would know how to make a complaint. Confidential and procedural documents were stored safely and updated in a timely manner.

The home had a satisfactory system of recording the auditing processes that were in place to regularly assess and monitor the quality of the service or manage risks to people in carrying out the regulated activity. The registered manager had assessed incidents and accidents, staff recruitment practices, care and support documentation, medicines and decided if any actions were required to make sure improvements to practice were being made.

People’s views were obtained by holding residents meetings and sending out an annual satisfaction survey.