Archived: Westwood House

Updated 1 November 2017

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, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 4 October 2017. Our visit was unannounced. This meant that the staff and provider did not know that we would be visiting.

The inspection team consisted of two inspectors 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. Their area of expertise was older people.

Before the inspection we reviewed information that we held about the service such as notifications. Notifications are events which happened in the service that the provider is required to tell us about.

We contacted the commissioners of the service to obtain their views about the care provided. The commissioners had funding responsibility for some of the people using the service. We also contacted Healthwatch Leicestershire who are the local consumer champion for people using adult social care services for any feedback about the service. We used this information to inform our planning for the inspection.

At the time of our inspection there were nine people using the service. We were able to speak with four people living there and one relative. We also spoke with the registered manager, a senior care worker, the cook and two care workers.

We observed care and support being provided in the communal areas of the service. This was so that we could understand people’s experiences. By observing the care received, we could determine whether or not they were comfortable with the support they were provided with.

We reviewed a range of records about people’s care and how the service was managed. This included three people’s plans of care. We also looked at associated documents including risk assessments and medicine administration records. We looked at records of meetings, two staff recruitment files, staff training records and the quality assurance audits that the management team had completed.

Updated 1 November 2017

Westwood House is located in Ashby De La Zouch, Leicestershire. The service provides care and accommodation for up to 16 older people with age related needs, including dementia and physical disability. On the day of our inspection there were nine people living at the service.

This inspection was unannounced and took place on the 4 October 2017. At our last inspection in December 2016, we identified two breaches of regulations. Regulation 12 safe care and treatment and regulation 18 staffing. We asked the provider to take action to make improvements with regard to medicine management, the management of risks at the service and staff training and supervision. At this inspection we checked to see if the provider had made the necessary improvements. We found that improvements had been made.

The service had a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are 'registered persons'. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People told us they felt safe living at Westwood House. Relatives we spoke with agreed with what they told us. The staff team were aware of their responsibilities for keeping people safe from avoidable harm and knew to report any concerns to the registered manager or a member of the management team. The management team were aware of their responsibilities around the safeguarding of people and training on how to keep people safe from harm had been completed.

People's needs had been identified and the risks associated with people's care and support had been assessed and managed. Where risks had been identified these had, where ever possible, been minimised to better protect people's health and welfare.

Plans of care had been developed for each person using the service and the staff team knew the needs of the people they were supporting, including their preferences.

People felt there were currently enough members of staff on duty each day because their care and support needs were being met. Care and support was provided at a pace that suited people and the staff team had the time to talk with the people using the service.

People received their medicines safely. Systems were in place to regularly audit the medicines held at the service and appropriate records were being kept.

Checks had been carried out when new members of staff had started working at the service. This was to make sure they were suitable and safe to work there. An induction into the service had been provided and ongoing training was being delivered. This provided the staff team with the skills and knowledge they needed in order to meet people’s needs.

People told us the meals served at Westwood House were good. Their dietary requirements had been assessed and a balanced diet was being provided. The registered manager was reminded of the importance of maintaining records to reflect that people were offered drinks throughout the 24 hour period. Particularly where people were at risk of dehydration.

People were supported to maintain good health. They had access to relevant healthcare services such as doctors and community nurses and they received on going healthcare support.

The staff team supported people to make decisions about their day to day care and support. Where people required additional support to make decisions, advocacy support was available to them. Where people lacked the capacity to make their own decisions, assessments of their capacity to consent to aspects of their care had not always been made. It was also not always clear what specific decisions people were unable to make.

The staff team felt supported by the registered manager. They explained they were given the opportunity to meet with them regularly and felt able to speak with them if they had any concerns or suggestions of any kind.

People told us the staff team were kind and caring and they were treated with respect. Throughout our visit we observed the staff team treating people in a friendly, caring and considerate manner.

Relatives and friends were encouraged to visit and they told us that they were made most welcome by the staff team. A complaints procedure was in place and the people using the service and their relatives and friends knew what to do if they had a concern of any kind. They were confident that any concern raised would be dealt with properly.

Staff meetings and meetings for the people using the service and their relatives were being held. These provided people with the opportunity to have a say and to be involved in how the service was run. Questionnaires were also being used to gather people's feedback.

There were systems in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service being provided. Regular audits on the documentation held had been completed and regular checks on the environment and on the equipment used to maintain people's safety had been carried out.

The registered manager understood their legal responsibility for notifying the CQC of deaths, incidents and injuries that occurred or affected people who used the service.