Riviera Court

Updated 4 July 2023

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.

Inspection team

This inspection was carried out by 1 inspector, and an Expert by Experience who made telephone calls to people and their relatives to gain feedback on the service and the care provided. 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

Riviera Court is a 'care home'. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

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

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced. Inspection activity started on 17th April 2023 and ended on 25th April 2023. We visited the service on the 17th and 19th April 2023.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought 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 of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spent time with 7 people living at the service, 5 members of staff, the clinical lead, and the registered manager. To help us assess and understand how people's care needs were being met we reviewed 4 people's care records. We also reviewed a number of records relating to the running of the service. These included staff recruitment and training records, medicine records and records associated with the provider's quality assurance systems.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at quality assurance records, copies of the service's improvement plan and training records. We sought views from relatives, and healthcare professionals on the care and support provided. We received feedback from 4 relatives and 3 healthcare professionals. We also spoke with Torbay Council's quality assurance and improvement team (QAIT).

Updated 4 July 2023

About the service

Riviera Court is a residential care home providing personal care to people of working age who are experiencing severe and enduring mental health conditions. At the time of the inspection there were 16 people living at the service.

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

People told us they liked living at Riviera Court, were safe, happy, and supported by staff with sensitivity and compassion. Relatives and healthcare professionals spoke positively about the service and were keen to share their experiences and tell us about the improvements that had been made by the new provider.

We found since taking over the service in November 2022, the provider had made a number of positive changes and we saw how they were investing in all aspects of the service. However, the service was not always operating in accordance with the regulations and best practice guidance.

Some systems were either not in place or had not been undertaken robustly to identify and monitor the quality of the service and drive improvement. This meant some systems operated by the provider had failed to identify concerns and shortfalls we found during this inspection.

People were not always protected from the risk of harm as staff did not always have all of the information needed to meet people's needs safely. We have also made a recommendation in relation to infection prevention control procedures within the services laundry processes.

People were not always supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff were not always supporting people in the least restrictive way possible. The service could not always demonstrate they were acting in people’s best interests.

Most medicines were given safely and correctly. However, we have made a recommendation about staff giving people’s medicines as some improvements were needed.

Staff were employed in sufficient numbers to meet people's needs safely. However, we have made a recommendation about reviewing the services’ recruitment processes.

People received individualised care and support from staff who knew them well.

People knew how to make a complaint and felt confident they would be listened to if they needed to raise concerns.

The management team were committed to providing good quality care and were responsive to the feedback we gave them, immediately addressing any shortfalls we highlighted.

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

This service was registered with us on 24 November 2022 and this is the first inspection. The last rating for the service under the previous provider was requires improvement, published on 21st October 2019.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection to provide a rating for the service. 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.

Enforcement and Recommendations

We have identified breaches in relation to safe care and treatment, need for consent and good governance. We have also made recommendations in relation to recruitment, medicines and infection prevention and control at this inspection.

Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

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 work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.