15 August 2019
During a routine inspection
Chiltern Rest Home is a residential care home registered to provide accommodation and personal care to up to 21 people. At the time of the inspection the home was fully occupied. The provider offered a service for older people and people living with dementia.
Chiltern Rest Home is located on two floors. Bedrooms, bathrooms and shower areas were situated on both floors. A lounge/dining area was located on the ground floor. A stair lift, and passenger lift were in place to enable people to access both floors. People had access to a secure garden.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
The provider’s governance was ineffective to review, assess and monitor the safety of the environment which placed people at potential risk of harm. Systems were in place to monitor hygiene standards within the home. However, the layout of the laundry was unsuitable to ensure clean linen did not come into contact with unclean linen.
Staff had the skills to recognise abuse and knew how to safeguard people from this. People were supported by skilled staff to take their prescribed medicines. Staff had access to risk assessments that supported their understanding about how to care for people safely. People were cared for by sufficient numbers of staff who had been recruited safely. When things went wrong action had been taken to reduce the risk of it happening again.
The assessment of people’s needs ensured they received a service that met their preferences. People were cared for and supported by staff who were skilled and who had access to one to one supervision sessions. People had access to a choice of meals and staff were aware of suitable meals for the individual with regards to their health condition, likes and dislikes. The provider worked with other organisations to ensure people received a seamless service. People had access to relevant healthcare professionals to promote their physical and mental health.
The home had been adapted for people with reduced mobility, having grab rails, assisted baths and showers. 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.
Staff were caring and compassionate and had a good understanding of people’s specific needs. People were involved in decisions about their care and their right to privacy and dignity was respected by staff.
Equality, diversity and human rights were explored during people’s assessment to ensure they were not discriminated due to their culture, religion, sexuality or protected characteristics. People were encouraged by staff to pursue social activities. People were able to maintain contact with people important to them. Complaints were listened to, taken seriously and acted on. At the time of our inspection visit no one was receiving end of life care.
There was a clear management structure in place and people who used the service and staff were aware of who was running the home and were very complimentary about the management support. People’s views and opinions were sought through meetings and quality assurance surveys.
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 4 April 2017).
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
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.