Thomas Owen House

Updated 12 July 2019

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

On day one, the inspection team was made up of two inspectors and an Expert by Experience. One of the inspectors was a pharmacy inspector and they looked at medication management. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service. The inspection continued on day two with one inspector.

Service and service type

Thomas Owen House 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.

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. We sought feedback from the local authority and Healthwatch. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. 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 spoke with 12 people who used the service and one visiting professional about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with nine members of staff including the registered manager, two compliance managers, nursing staff, support workers and the cook.

We reviewed a range of records. This included two people’s care records in detail plus a further two care records for specific information as well as multiple medication records. We looked at three staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the registered manager to validate evidence found. We looked at medication management and the fire risk assessment and we also spoke with a professional who has experience of this care home.

Updated 12 July 2019

About the service: Thomas Owen House is a care home which specialises in supporting people with mental health needs. It is registered to provide nursing care for up to 35 people. On day one of our inspection, 33 people were living in the home and on day two this was 34.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found: The management of medicines was found to be safe, although we asked the registered manager to review the system for administering medicines when people were away from the home. They have done this following our inspection.

We saw improvements had been made with regards to the maintenance of premises and equipment. However, the fire risk assessment was not given a robust review. We asked the registered manager to update this and following our inspection, they have provided an updated version.

People told us they were safe living at Thomas Owen House and they had a choice of whether they wanted a key to their own door. There were sufficient numbers of suitably skilled staff who were deployed throughout the building. People living in the home were consulted about the recruitment of new staff.

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.

People felt well supported by the staff team and told us they had helped them to achieve positive outcomes in their lives. People felt in control of their care and we saw how they were included in the running of the home.

People praised the food served and told us they had numerous choices at mealtimes. Staff were supporting people to make smoothies during our inspection, which we saw they enjoyed.

Activities were a strength of the service as people were supported to live active lifestyles both inside and away from the home. The registered provider was having a gymnasium built on the premises and people told us they had regular visits from a personal trainer.

Care plans were sufficiently detailed and found to be regularly audited along with other aspects of the service. The registered provider demonstrated their oversight of the home. Complaints were appropriately managed.

Staff enjoyed working at this home and said it was well-led by the registered manager who created a happy environment for people to live and work in. Staff received regular formal support to help them carry out their roles effectively.

The registered manager had developed strong partnership links with other services and agencies to provide the best possible care.

We have made a recommendation regarding checking records of complaints to ensure any allegations of abuse are reported to the Care Quality Commission and local safeguarding authority.

Rating at last inspection (and update): The last rating for this service was Requires Improvement (published June 2018) and there were multiple breaches of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected: To follow up on enforcement action we took at our last inspection and to review whether the action plan the registered provider submitted to us had been acted on.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.