Canal Vue

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

People’s needs were assessed. Their care, support and treatment reflected these needs. Leaders were keen to make improvements and took other agencies feedback on board. The service worked well with other agencies to achieve the best outcome for people. Referrals to health and social care professionals were completed in a timely manner. People’s consent to care was clearly recorded and views and wishes were taken into account.

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.

People and their relatives participated in their care planning and were confident their individual needs were appropriately assessed and understood. This included their communication needs. For example, one person had visual impairment that effected the way they communicated, and staff adjusted to their communication needs. People’s comments about assessing needs included, “Staff asked me when I first came here what my likes and dislikes were.” “My [relative] has dementia and staff always keep me up to date with what is going on as it’s changing all the time.”

Leaders ensured people’s needs were regularly assessed. Staff reviewed people’s care plans at least monthly, or when their needs changed. Staff knew people’s needs well and were informed by leaders about any changes, for example during handover meetings.

Processes ensured that people’s needs were assessed and reviewed regularly from the moment of admission, including regular reviews of people's care plans and a ‘resident of the day’ system. We saw evidence of staff involving people and their relatives in completing assessments.

People were happy with the quality of their care. They enjoyed food choices and were offered diet that was in line with their needs and preferences. Everyone we spoke to were happy with their meals. One relative said, “Before admission my relative’s eating was very poor, but staff are aware of that, and they monitor my [relative] carefully and give my relative supplements if needed. My relative’s weight is stable now.”

Leaders ensured staff were up to date with their training, to deliver care that is in line with the national guidelines and best practice. Staff involved people as much as possible in their care and encouraged the involvement of people’s representatives.

Staff were up to date with the national legislation, evidence-based good practice and required standards. Leaders arranged for staff training that was relevant to their role and encouraged and supported staff to complete additional qualifications, such as National Vocational Qualification level 2, 3 and 4. There were processes to record people’s nutrition and hydration needs, however staff did not always complete people’s food and fluid intake diaries in line with their care plans. The provider was working towards addressing it with staff.

People’s care was coordinated effectively to meet their needs. This included support from external health professionals, such as district nurses.

Staff had access to the information they needed to appropriately assess, plan, and deliver people’s care, treatment, and support. Staff aimed to complete a detailed assessment with a person prior to their admission into the service, to ensure the person only had to tell their story once. They collaborated with partner agencies to ensure they gathered sufficient information about the person to be able to support them effectively when their care commenced.

We received positive feedback from partner agencies regarding how the provider collaborated with them. One professional said, "Staff provided excellent specialist care for [person's name] and worked closely with family and other partner agencies. They responded well to crisis and recorded and communicated concerns well. I was very impressed with the service they had provided to my client, and I would be happy to commission their service if I needed them in the future”.

There were processes to ensure effective communication with external agencies to co-ordinate people’s care. People’s care plans recorded other health care professionals’ involvement and defined everyone’s roles and responsibilities. People’s care plans described desired care outcomes. Staff shared information between teams and services to ensure continuity of care, for example when clinical tasks were delegated to district nurses’ team.

People were supported to manage their own health, care and wellbeing needs as much as possible by staff who understood their needs and preferences. People and their relatives engaged in regularly reviewing their health and wellbeing needs. People were encouraged to make healthy choices to help promote and maintain their health and wellbeing. Staff offered them healthy diet options and encouraged to get involved in exercises. People had access to activities that supported their physical and mental wellbeing.

Staff aimed to get to know people as best as they could to ensure any changes in needs were quickly identified. Staff encouraged people to be as independent as possible, where safe to do so.

Processes supported staff to identify risks to people’s health and well being early and to prevent deterioration. There was an activity schedule and activities staff who promoted a range of activities that supported people’s physical and mental well being. External health professionals, such as GP visited the home regularly to support people’s health needs.

People were happy with how staff monitored their outcomes. People and relatives’ comments included, “My [relative] had a lot of mental health problems for many years requiring treatment for depression. Since my [relative] has been in here [in Canal Vue], [relative] is happier than ever been. We have never seen [relative’s name] like this before.”

Staff knew people well. They monitored, recorded, and reported when people's health deteriorated or needs changed.

There were effective approaches to monitor people’s care and treatment and their outcomes. This meant that continuous improvements were made to people’s care and treatment.

People and relatives understood their rights around consent to the care and treatment. People’s views and wishes were considered. Relatives of people who lacked the capacity to consent were engaged in making decisions in their loved one’s best interest.

Leaders showed a good understanding of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and assessing people’s mental capacity appropriately. Staff understood the importance of ensuring that people fully understand what they are consenting to and the importance of obtaining consent before they deliver care or treatment. Staff knew how to support people with their rights, including their human rights, rights under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and their rights under the Equality Act 2010. For example, they understood the concepts of mental capacity and deprivation of liberty and knew how to apply it in practice.

Processes were followed when people with legal authority or responsibility were making decisions within the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005. This included the duty to consult others such as carers, families, or advocates. People's capacity and ability to consent was considered, and they, or a person lawfully acting on their behalf, were involved in planning, managing, and reviewing their care and treatment.