Trafalgar Care Home

On this page

• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

Effective – this means we looked for evidence that people’s care, treatment and support achieved good outcomes and promoted a good quality of life, based on best available evidence. At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has changed to requires improvement. This meant the effectiveness of people’s care, treatment and support did not always achieve good outcomes or was inconsistent.

This service scored 58 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The provider made sure people’s care, treatment and communication needs were assessed before they moved into the home. These assessments formed the basis for care plans which were regularly reviewed by staff. Relatives told us they were involved in the initial assessment with their loved one, however, could not remember taking part in any further reviews. They said, “Initially I was included, but not recently. I don’t know whether anything has changed, if there are reviews then I’m not involved.” The registered manager told us, “We invite relatives to be part of reviews. We speak to them directly when they visit the home, also we email or call. We invite relatives to meetings to talk about the home, to talk about what is going on, give them the opportunity to speak with us if they want to.”

The provider mostly planned and delivered people’s care and treatment in line with legislation and current evidence-based good practice and standards and had provided staff with additional training to support people living with health conditions such as dementia, epilepsy and diabetes. However, staff were not always aware of who had a diagnosis of Epilepsy. This meant, in the event of a seizure staff may not provide the support the person required placing them at risk. We observed people being supported to eat nutritious food in line with their assessed needs. We asked relatives if they felt their loved ones had enough to eat and drink and if their preferences and choices were respected, they said, “Yes definitely. They initially completed a list of likes and dislikes with [loved one]. The food always looks and smells nice, and they always have access to snacks and drinks.”

Healthcare professionals told us the staff mostly worked well across teams and services to support people. One healthcare professional said, “Staff act professionally with me, and I feel I have a good working relationship with them.” However, we also received feedback from healthcare professionals who did not always feel staff worked well with them. One healthcare professional said, “When requesting information about skin integrity, it was challenging to gain the correct information.” This meant professionals had not always been provided with the information they needed to be assured people were receiving the care they required.

The provider supported people to manage their health to maximise their independence, choice and control. A healthcare professional told us, “They seek access to healthcare professionals appropriately.” Staff supported people to live healthier lives. We observed people being supported to eat a nutritious balanced diet. People were given options to choose what they wanted to eat and could access food and drinks in between mealtimes. A relative told us, “Staff initially completed a list of likes and dislikes for [loved one]. The food is home cooked, looks and smalls nice and residents always have snacks and drinks available to them.” People’s special dietary needs were catered for.

The service routinely monitored people’s care and treatment. However, had not always provided clinicians with records to aid their decisions. We received feedback from healthcare professionals including, “Staff reported [person] had displayed agitation daily, however, when I requested to see the documentation, this was not sent to me. I asked for a second time and staff told me they did not have access to these.” This meant there was a delay in timely action being taking to improve the outcomes for this person.

The provider told people about their rights around consent and respected these when delivering person-centred care and treatment. Staff supported and involved people’s families and carers to make best interest decisions where people did not have capacity. They said, “Obtaining consent is essential for respecting a person’s rights, ensuring legal compliance, and providing high-quality, person-centred care”, “It is important to get consent from people we support specially before doing any procedure or personal care” and, “If a resident lacks capacity, I follow the Mental Capacity Act guidelines and report to senior staff. For example, if a resident refuses medication, I document it and inform the nurse or manager.”