Meadowfield House Home for Older People

Updated 3 February 2021

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.

The service had been identified for use by the Local Authority as a designated care setting in response to the Winter Plan for people discharged from hospital with a positive Covid-19 status. This targeted inspection was to ensure that the service was compliant with infection control and prevention measures.

We inspected this service as a proposed designated care setting. Whilst we were assured that the service met good infection prevention and control guidelines, at the time of the inspection the location was not ready to be set up as a designated care setting. The commissioners decided to put their plans on hold while they finalise their operating procedures. They will re-apply once they are ready to proceed. At which point we will revisit.

This inspection took place on 13 January 2020 and was announced.

Updated 3 February 2021

This comprehensive inspection took place on 21 August 2018 and was unannounced. At our last inspection of the service in March 2017 we found a breach of Regulation 17 Good governance of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. We also made some recommendations to the registered provider about improving the quality and safety of the service.

Following the last inspection, we asked the provider to complete an action plan to show what they would do and by when to improve the key questions of safe and well-led to at least good.

At this inspection we found that the provider had completed those actions and recommendations and we found the service was meeting the fundamental standards of quality and safety.

Meadowfield House Home for Older People is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection. It is a modern two story building set in its own grounds with parking and a number of easily accessible, private and secure garden and seating areas. Accommodation and personal care is provided for up to 47 older people. On the day of the inspection there were 43 people accommodated across three units. Poppyfields is an 11 bedded residential care unit, Daisyfields is a 13 bedded unit mainly for residential care use and Rosemeadows is a 23 bedded unit designated as a community assessment unit that provides rehabilitation and reablement.

There was a registered manager in post. 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 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

We saw improvements had been made to the systems used in the home to ensure effective assessment and monitoring of the safety and quality of the service provided.

People received their medications as they had been prescribed. Appropriate arrangements were in place in relation to the storage, care planning and records for the administration of medicines.

There were sufficient numbers of suitable staff to meet people’s needs. However, we noted that the use of agency staff in comparison to employed permanent staff had been at times excessive. The provider was actively recruiting for staff and we saw how this was an ongoing process.

Staff had received sufficient training to safely support and care for people. However, we noted that some elements of training, mainly for newly appointed staff, were still waiting to be delivered. We saw that the provider had a training delivery plan in place which covered these aspects.

Staff were also supported through regular staff meetings, supervision and appraisals.

We saw that the service worked with a variety of external agencies and health professionals to provide appropriate care and support to meet people’s physical and emotional health needs.

Where safeguarding concerns or incidents had occurred these had been reported by the registered manager to the appropriate authorities and we could see records of the actions that had been taken by the home to protect people and identified lesson that had been learned.

People’s rights were protected. The registered manager was knowledgeable about their responsibilities under the Mental Capacity Act 2005. People were only deprived of their liberty if this had been authorised by the appropriate body or where applications had been made to do so.

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

People living in the home were supported to access activities that were made available to them and pastimes of their choice.

Auditing and quality monitoring systems were in place that allowed the service to demonstrate effectively the safety and quality of the home.

We observed staff displayed caring and meaningful interactions with people and people were treated with respect. We observed people's dignity and privacy were actively promoted by the staff supporting them.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.