Background to this inspection
Updated
15 February 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 9 January 2017 and was unannounced.
The inspection team consisted of one inspector. Before our inspection we reviewed information we held about the home including information of concern and complaints. We looked at statutory notifications we had been sent by the provider. A statutory notification is information about important events which the provider is required to send us by law. Before the inspection, the provider completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We spoke with other agencies such as the local authority to gain their views about the quality of the service provided. We used this information to help us plan our inspection.
People who lived at the service were unable to share their experiences about how the service was run due to their complex needs. As part of the inspection we spoke with three members of staff and the registered manager. We also spoke with two relatives to gain their views of how the service was run. We looked at two people’s care records and the medicine records of two people. We were sent records relating to the audit system the provider had in place to monitor the quality of care people received.
Updated
15 February 2017
This unannounced inspection took place on 9 January 2017. At our last inspection in July 2015 the provider was rated as requires improvement. Dimensions provides accommodation and personal care for up to 6 people who may have a learning disability.
There was a registered manager in place. 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.
Relatives we spoke to told us they thought their family member was safe. Staff understood their responsibilities in keeping people safe and knew how to report any suspected abuse and felt confident they would be listened to. Staff were aware of the risks to people’s health and safety and knew the measures in place to keep people safe. We saw there were sufficient staff to keep people safe. The provider had a safe recruitment system which meant staff were suitable to work with vulnerable people. There was a system in place to ensure people got their medicines as prescribed.
Relatives told us they thought staff were trained to meet the needs of the people who lived at the service. Staff told us they received training which meant they could provide effective care for the people they supported. Staff sought consent from people before providing any care. People’s rights were protected because staff and the registered manager had applied the principles of the Mental Capacity Act. People had choices about their food and had sufficient to eat and drink to maintain their health. Relatives told us and we saw people had access to healthcare professionals when their needs changed.
We saw people were supported by kind and considerate staff. We saw people were happy and comfortable with staff. Staff told us how they offered people choices in their daily lives. People were encouraged to maintain their independence and were supported by staff in a dignified way.
Relatives told us, and we saw people were supported by staff who knew their individual preferences which meant the care they received was responsive to their individual needs. People had access to activities both in the service and in the community. The provider had a system in place which meant should they receive any complaints they would be listened to and investigated.
We saw people appeared happy living at the service. Relatives and staff told us the service was well led. Staff felt supported by the management and told us the culture was open and transparent. We saw there was system in place which monitored the quality of the care people received. Where areas of concern were identified, action was taken to ensure people received the care they needed.