The Rowans Care Home

Updated 1 March 2024

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

The inspection team consisted of 2 inspectors, a regulatory co-ordinator 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.

Service and service type

The Rowans Care Home is a ‘care home’. 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. The Rowans Care Home is a care home without nursing care. 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 a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before 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 10 people and 5 relatives who were able to share their views about the care provided. We attended a relative meeting and observed interactions between people and staff, including the lunch time meal. We also met with 8 staff members including the registered manager, deputy manager, area manager, care staff, housekeeping staff and maintenance person. We reviewed a range of records including 3 staff recruitment files, staff training information, policies and procedures and records relating to the day to day running and governance of the service.

Updated 1 March 2024

About this service

The Rowans Care Home is a residential care home that does not provide nursing. The service accommodates up to 54 people who require support with their personal care needs, many of whom are living with dementia. Accommodation is provided across 2 floors with communal areas and an enclosed rear garden. At the time of this inspection there were 45 people using the service.

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

Not everyone had a sufficient and detailed care and risk management plan in place. Risk management plans did not always provide clear guidance for staff in how to meet people's needs and reduce risks to people's safety. Care plans were not always reflective of people's current needs. The registered manager was in the process of reviewing and updating care plans and records at the time of our inspection visit. Although hygiene and cleaning standards had improved in the service, we found further improvements were needed to ensure these were sufficiently embedded in staff working practices.

Areas of the premises were dated and in need of refurbishment. The provider had agreed a significant refurbishment plan and work was in progress at the time of our inspection.

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. However, people's care records did not always provide clear evidence that best interest processes had been followed.

People were protected from the risk of abuse because the provider had effective safeguarding systems in place which were clearly understood by staff. People were supported by enough staff to meet their needs and keep them safe. People's medicines were managed safely.

Staff supported people to achieve positive outcomes from their care using a person-centred approach. People were supported to maintain their health and well being and staff worked in partnership with other agencies involved in people's care. Staff ensured people had enough to eat and drink.

Staff felt supported in their role and felt able to raise concerns and make suggestions. People, relatives and staff were engaged and consulted in issues and changes within the service. We received positive feedback around the impact of the registered manager in making improvements, providing clear and consistent leadership and creating a more positive and inclusive culture. Quality assurance and monitoring was carried out and governance processes highlighted the concerns we found at this inspection. The registered manager and provider had prioritised improvements and therefore some were in progress or not fully embedded at the time of our inspection. The provider was able to share plans to complete and embed improvements following our inspection visit.

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 20 April 2022).

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service and to follow up on specific concerns we had received about the service.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. The overall rating for the service has changed from good to requires improvement based on the findings of this inspection. We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the safe and effective sections of this report.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the 'all reports' link for The Rowans Care Home on our website at www.cqc.org.uk

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.