Country Lodge Nursing Home

Updated 10 March 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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This included checking the provider was meeting COVID-19 vaccination requirements. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

The inspection was undertaken by an inspector and an Expert by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

Country Lodge Nursing Home is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Country Lodge Nursing Home is a care home with nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. 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.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection, including statutory notifications which the registered manager is required to send to us by law. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with eight people and three relatives about their experience of the service. We spoke with the nominated individual who is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider. We also spoke with the registered manager, the clinical governance lead, a registered nurse, two care staff, the chef and the housekeeper.

We reviewed a range of records including nine care plans and multiple medication records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures, were reviewed.

Updated 10 March 2022

Country Lodge Nursing Home provides personal and nursing care to up to 26 people with a range of health care needs in one adapted building. At the time of our inspection there were 23 people using the service.

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

People were safe living at Country Lodge Nursing Home. One person said, “The staff, and the food, are superb. We are being attended to by a group of ladies who will do anything for you”. Staffing levels were sufficient to meet people’s needs. Staff attended to people’s needs promptly when they used their call bells. People received their medicines as required.

People were complimentary about staff and a relative told us, “She loves them all. They are very attentive and treat everyone as an individual. They accommodate any meal requests people have. For example, my Mum had a marmalade sandwich for breakfast as this is something she can manage better than toast or cereal. Anything she wants, they will make it for her”. People had access to healthcare professionals as needed.

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.

The registered manager was sensitive and responsive to people’s needs. Residents’ meetings enabled people to make suggestions which were listened to. One person told us, “I suggested we choose a small, medium or large meal when we order our lunches to avoid unnecessary waste. They haven’t started it yet, but they did say they would do”. Audits had been implemented to monitor the quality of care and the home overall.

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

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 24 April 2020). At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the rating has improved to good.

Why we inspected

We undertook this inspection to see whether improvements had been made following the last 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. This included checking the provider was meeting COVID-19 vaccination requirements.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.

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

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Country Lodge Nursing Home on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

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