Westview Lodge Care Home

Updated 19 July 2022

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 Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

One inspector completed this inspection.

Service and service type

Westview Lodge is a care home. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

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

Notice of inspection

This was an unannounced inspection.

What we did

We reviewed information we had received about the service, which included details about incidents the provider must notified us about, 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. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all the information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 11 people who used the service and four relatives to ask about their experience of the care provided. We also 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. We spoke with the regional manager, the registered manager, the deputy manager, four senior carers, five care staff, an assistant cook, the administrator and two visiting healthcare professionals.

We reviewed a range of records. This included seven people's care records, medication records and various records related to recruitment, staff training and supervision, and the management of the service.

Updated 19 July 2022

About the service

Westview Lodge is a care home which provides residential care for up to 74 people. It operates an intermediary service for people who need rehabilitation following an illness in hospital or crisis in their own home. It also provides care for older people and people living with a dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 72 people using the service.

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

People reported they were extremely satisfied with the service. People and relatives said staff excelled at their jobs and always went above and beyond in delivering the care. They described the little extras staff just did as a part of their job such as assisting relatives to get to the service for celebratory meals. Some people commented this had never occurred when they had used other care homes.

Staff were passionate about providing good care outcomes and took ownership for their practice. People found the service provided a high standard of care and the quality of staff working with them was exemplary.

Staff found the management team's expectation to treat everyone compassionately was an excellent approach to adopt. Staff found this enabled them to really work to their best and they really loved working for the company. They had introduced really innovative, caring and empathetic ways to support people get the best quality of life possible.

The service had developed a comprehensive activities programme, which was designed to assist people explore people's hidden talents and aspirations. The dedicated work of the activity coordinators had led to one person publishing a book, another discovering their talent for writing poems and many more having treasured experiences. Staff embraced the ethos of engagement and also undertook regular planned and impromptu activities. People were extremely complimentary about what was on offer at the service.

The team had been nominated for several awards and the registered manager had won the provider’s manager of the year award. The registered manager’s ultimate aim was to deliver holistic and compassionate care. Multiple examples were provided around how the service had enriched people’s quality of life whilst they lived at the service and assisted individuals to regain the skills to return home.

The management team had created an extremely robust governance system, which rapidly identified the smallest of issue, which was then quickly addressed.

There were enough staff on duty. An effective recruitment programme was in place. Medicine management was effective and closely monitored. Staff who administered medicines had the appropriate training.

Staff adhered to COVID-19 regulations and procedures. The registered manager ensured staff had access to ample supplies of PPE and they completed regular spot checks to make sure staff complied with the guidance and best practice.

The service completed two types of assessment, one for people receiving long-term care and the other for those individuals use the intermediary service. These were used as the basis for the care records. When necessary, external professionals were involved in individual people’s care.

Staff had received mandatory and condition-specific training. Staff supervision sessions were regularly completed, as well as competency assessments.

Staff had received training around the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and associated code of practice and felt confident applying this in their practice. 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.

On the whole people found the food provided was nutritious and enjoyable. The care records clearly set out what people wanted, how the food was to be prepared and associated risks such as choking were to be managed. Staff monitored people’s weight. It was noticeable all the records we reviewed showed individuals had gained weight.

Staff took steps to safeguard people and promote their human rights. The management team confirmed they took all concerns seriously and determined what lessons could be learnt.

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

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 1 June 2020 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection as the service had not previously been rated.

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.

Follow up

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