St Pauls Nursing Home

Updated 17 June 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 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, a specialist advisor and an Expert by experience. The specialist advisor was a nursing professional. 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

St Paul's is a care home with nursing care. 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. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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. At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

Inspection activity started on 03 May and concluded on 16 May when feedback was provided. We visited the service on 03 May 2022.

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 (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 seven sisters who used the service about their experience of the care provided. We also spoke with 13 members of staff which included nursing, and care staff, activities, co-ordinator, and domestic, the deputy manager, and registered manager. We also spoke with two pastoral leads from the convent.

We reviewed a range of documents and records including the care records for five sisters, 16 medicine records, and three staff recruitment files. We also looked at records that related to the management and quality assurance of the service.

Updated 17 June 2022

About the service

St Pauls convent is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care and accommodation for up to 26 sisters. At the time of our inspection there were 18 sisters using the service. St Pauls is a unique service as it is for women who are referred to as sisters who are

from a religious order of St Paul, the apostle. The sisters have spent their lives as nuns serving others and are part of the catholic religious community. The home is purpose built and based within the convent.

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

The provider needed to improve their understanding of their regulatory responsibilities to ensure incidents were reported to CQC without delay. Action was taken to address this when raised with the provider.

Improvements were required to ensure care records completed for sisters fully reflected the support sisters received from staff to maintain their health and wellbeing and to reflect any changes in need.

Sisters were supported by staff that understood their individual needs and had been trained and understood how to protect sisters from abuse. Sisters received their medicines when they needed them and had access to healthcare professionals where required. Systems were in place to reduce the risk of infection, and to review any incident and accidents to see if there were any lessons to learn from these.

Sisters 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. Sisters enjoyed the food provided which met their preferences. Sisters were supported to fulfil their religious obligations and to access meaningful activities which they enjoyed. Sisters were supported to access the extensive grounds of the convent.

Sisters made positive comments about the staff that supported them. Staff were described as friendly, caring, and respectful. Sisters were treated with respect and dignity and their independence was promoted. Sisters were involved in the development of their care plans which reflected their needs and preferences. Sisters knew how to raise concerns and felt confident any issues would be addressed.

Sisters were supported to provide feedback about the way the service was managed. Systems were in place to monitor the delivery of the service and drive improvement.

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 10 January 2019).

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about safeguarding, poor staff practices, staffing, poor care, and poor management. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.

We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from these concerns. Please see the Safe, Caring and Well led sections of this full report.

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.

Follow up

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