Elton House Care Home

Updated 25 November 2020

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.

As part of CQC’s response to care homes with outbreaks of coronavirus, we are conducting reviews to ensure that the Infection Prevention and Control practice was safe and the service was compliant with IPC measures. This was a targeted inspection looking at the IPC practices the provider has in place.

This inspection took place on 12 November 2020 and was announced.

Updated 25 November 2020

About the service

Elton House is a care home providing personal and nursing care to 39 people aged 65 and over at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to 95 people.

Elton House accommodates people across three floors. Each person has their own ‘apartment’ with a separate en-suite and kitchenette area. Each room and communal bath / shower room has separate adapted facilities. The home has a separate area specifically designed to enable people living with dementia to live as independently as possible with minimal restrictions.

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

The service provided exceptionally responsive, person-centred support to people which consistently achieved outstanding outcomes for people. Staff consistently went the extra mile to find out what people have done in the past. This enabled people to carry out person-centred activities, which enriched the quality of their lives. People were supported to maintain and develop new relationships that mattered to them and protected them from the risk of social isolation and loneliness. The registered manager used concerns to improve the service. People were supported sensitively and with compassion with end of life care, which ensured people experienced a comfortable, dignified and pain-free death.

People were protected from avoidable harm and abuse by staff. Risks to people's safety had been identified and assessed. Staff followed people's risk management plans to keep them safe. People received their prescribed medicines safely, from staff who had their competency to administer medicines assessed.

People's medicines were reviewed regularly to ensure continued administration was still required to meet their needs. Cleanliness and hygiene were maintained throughout the home, which reduced the risk of infection. Staff followed the required standards of food safety and hygiene, when preparing, serving and handling food.

People felt staff were well trained and able to support them effectively. Staff reviewed their development through regular supervision and appraisal meetings and staff felt supported by the management team. People gave mixed views about the food provided, but this met their dietary needs and preferences. A wide range of healthcare professional services were available to monitor and maintain people’s health and well-being.

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.

People felt staff were caring, kind and respectful when supporting them. People told us they felt their opinions mattered and they were listened to. People’s cultural and spiritual needs were encouraged and respected.

People, their relatives, staff and healthcare professionals confirmed the service was well-led. Regular audits were carried out to drive improvements. Governance systems in the service supported the high quality care people received and improvement plans continually sought ways to develop the care further.

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

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 04 September 2018 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on when they registered.

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.