Archived: Omega Oak Barn

Updated 20 July 2016

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 03 June 2016 and was carried out by two adult social care inspectors. The inspection was unannounced.

Prior to our inspection we reviewed all of the information we held about the service. We considered information which had been shared with us by the local authority. We received a Provider Information Return (PIR) from the service. This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We used the information on the completed PIR and also gathered information we required during the inspection visit.

During the inspection visit we spoke with six people who lived at the home, three visitors, four members of staff and the registered manager. After the inspection visit we spoke with two health and social care professionals. We spent time observing care in the communal areas of the home.

We looked at all areas of the home, including people’s bedrooms, with their permission where this was possible. We looked at the kitchen, laundry, bathrooms, toilets and all communal areas. We spent time looking at four care records and associated documentation. This included records relating to the management of the service; for example policies and procedures, audits and staff duty rotas. We looked at the recruitment records for three members of staff. We also observed the lunchtime experience and interactions between staff and people living at the home.

Updated 20 July 2016

This inspection took place on 3 June 2016 and was unannounced.

Omega Oak Barn provides personal care for up to 28 older people. On the day of the inspection there were 23 people living in the home. The home is located in the village of Beadlam close to the market towns of Helmsley and Kirbymoorside. The home does not provide nursing care.

The home had 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.

Staff were able to tell us what they would do to ensure people were safe and people told us they felt safe at the home. The home has sufficient suitable staff to care for people safely and they were safely recruited.

Staff had received training to ensure that people received care appropriate for their needs. Training was up to date in areas the registered provider considered mandatory, such as infection control, health and safety, food hygiene and medicine handling and also in specialist areas of health care appropriate for the people being cared for.

Staff had received up to date training in Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). Staff understood that people should be consulted about their care and that they should assume that a person had capacity to make decisions. They understood what needed to happen to protect the best interests of people who did not have capacity to make certain decisions.

People’s nutrition and hydration needs were met. People enjoyed the meals and they were of a good quality. Clinical care needs were met in consultation with health care professionals.

People were treated with kindness and compassion. We saw staff had a good rapport with people whilst treating them with dignity. Staff had a good knowledge and understanding of people’s needs and worked together well as a team. The atmosphere within the home was one of care and respect. Care plans provided detailed information about people’s individual needs and preferences. Records and observations provided evidence that people were supported to feel cared for and listened to.

People were supported to engage in daily activities they enjoyed and which were in line with their preferences and interests. Staff were responsive to people’s wishes and understood people’s personal histories and social networks so that they could support them in the way they preferred. Care plans were kept up to date when people's needs changed. People were encouraged to take part in their reviews and to give their views, which were acted upon.

People told us their complaints were responded to and the results of complaint investigations were clearly recorded. People we spoke with told us if they had concerns they were always addressed directly with the registered manager who responded quickly and with politeness.

The service was well managed. The registered manager ensured the quality of the service through a system of audits and checks. They sought feedback from people who lived at the home, relatives, visitors and professionals with an interest in the service and acted on this to improve the quality of care.