Archived: Green Lane Intermediate Care Centre

Updated 16 February 2022

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 COVID-19, we are conducting reviews to ensure that the Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) practice is safe and that services are compliant with IPC measures. We had also received information of concern about visiting arrangements at this service.

This was a targeted inspection looking at the IPC practices the provider has in place. We also asked the provider about any staffing pressures the service was experiencing and whether this was having an impact on the service.

This inspection took place on 26 January 2022 and was announced. We gave the service one day notice of the inspection.

Updated 16 February 2022

About the service

Green Lane Intermediate Care Centre 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.

This service provides short term rehabilitation to maximise the independence of people and enable them to return to living in their own home in the community. The service comprises care and therapy (occupational therapy and physiotherapy) all based in the same building and provides a range of facilities and equipment for up to 60 people who require rehabilitation. At the time of our inspection 30 people were using the service

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

People’s communication needs were not always recorded in their care files. We made a recommendation to the provider to review care plans to ensure peoples cultural needs were reflective.

Personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEPs) were not always readily available in an emergency. This was rectified during the inspection.

The registered provider did not always have effective governance systems in place to ensure the quality and safety of the service. For example, PEEPs, care plans not always reflective of people’s cultural needs. These had been picked up on inspection had not been identified by the provider.

There were mixed responses from people and their relatives around staffing levels. However, we found there was enough staff throughout the inspection to support people. We provided feedback to the regional support manager around the deployment of staff.

Staff were safely recruited, with all pre-employment checks completed before a new member of staff started work. Staff had completed training in safeguarding vulnerable adults. Staff said they would raise any concerns directly with the manager or nominated individual. People told us they felt safe and liked the staff who supported them.

We found the service to be clean and staff were observed to be wearing appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE).

People received their medicines as prescribed. All staff who had the responsibility of medication had completed training and competency checks in the safe administration of medicines.

A formal complaints policy was in place. People told us they felt they could raise any concerns. No one at the time of inspection had any concerns to raise.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published April 2018).

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted through our intelligence monitoring system.

We undertook a focused inspection to only review the key questions of Safe, Responsive and Well-led. Our report is only based on the findings in those areas reviewed at this inspection. The ratings from the previous comprehensive inspection for the Effective and Caring key questions were not looked at on this occasion. Ratings from the previous comprehensive inspection for those key questions were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection.

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.

The overall rating for the service has changed from good to requires improvement. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

We found evidence that the provider needs to make improvement. You can see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of this full report.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Green Lane Intermediate Care Centre on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Enforcement

We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the exceptional circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection. We will continue to monitor the service.

We found no evidence that people had been harmed however, governance systems were not robust enough to demonstrate risks were effectively managed and this placed people at risk of harm. This was a breach of regulation 17 (Good governance) of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014.

Follow up

We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.