About the service Oak Hall Care Home is a nursing home providing personal and nursing care for up to 55 older people with a range of health needs such as frailty, Parkinson’s disease and dementia. On the day of the inspection, there were 19 people living at the service.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People told us they felt safe living at Oak Hall and were happy with the staffing levels in the home. People's medicines were managed safely and effectively. Infection control procedures were followed, and effective in preventing the spread of infection.
Recruitment processes ensured staff were suitable and had the right values for the roles they had applied for. The provider completed appropriate checks on their previous experience and conduct. Staff received initial training and regular refreshers about safeguarding issues, and knew the correct procedures for raising concerns.
Staff supported people whilst promoting their independence. People had individual risk assessments in place and staff understood how to support them to stay safe without unnecessary restrictions. The provider ensured that staff received appropriate training, and new staff followed a process of induction which included working with more experienced staff until they felt confident in their role. The service worked positively with other health professionals to meet people's needs.
Each person had a personalised care plan which reflected their likes and dislikes, their interests, social preferences, and personalities. 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. People were asked about their end of life care wishes and preferences. We received very positive feedback about the end of life care provided at the home.
The registered manager was making steady and sustained improvements at the home and was clear about their responsibilities. People told us efficiency had improved, the home was more settled, and the team appeared to be working together well. The provider was open and transparent about the challenges of the past year including management and staffing changes and commented that the service had turned a corner. This was reflected by the feedback that we received from people and relatives. People we spoke to were without exception, very happy living at Oak Hall.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection and update
The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 16 January 2020) and we found a breach in Regulation 12 Safe care and treatment. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.
Why we inspected
We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service on 6 November 2019. A breach of legal requirements was found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve safe care and treatment.
We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Safe, Effective, Responsive and Well-led which contain those requirements.
The ratings from the previous comprehensive inspection for those key questions not looked at on this occasion were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection. The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Oak Hall Care Home on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.
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.