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Inspection on 29/06/09 for Elm Lea Residential Care Home

Also see our care home review for Elm Lea Residential Care Home for more information

This is the latest available inspection report for this service, carried out on 29th June 2009.

it is an annual review prepared by CQC after examining previous reports and information from the provider. At the time of this report, CQC judged the service to be Good.

The inspector made no statutory requirements on the home as a result of this inspection and there were no outstanding actions from the previous inspection report.

What follows are excerpts from this inspection report. For more information read the full report on the next tab.

Annual service review Name of Service: Elm Lea Residential Care Home The quality rating for this care home is: The rating was made on: two star good service 2 2 0 8 2 0 0 8 A quality rating is our assessment of how well a care home, agency or scheme is meeting the needs of the people who use it. We give a quality rating following a full review of the service. We call this review a ‘key’ inspection We do an annual service review when there has been no key inspection of the service in the last 12 months. It does not involve a visit to the service but is a summary of new information given to us, or collected by us, since the last key inspection or annual service review.   Has this annual service review changed our opinion of the service?   No You should read the last key inspection report for this service to get a full picture of how well outcomes for the people using the service are being met. The date by which we will do a key inspection: Name of inspector: Christine Grafton Date of this annual service review: 2 9 0 6 2 0 0 9 Annual Service Review Page 1 of 7 Information about the service Address of service: 17 Bartholomew Lane Saltwood Hythe Kent CT21 4BX 01303269891 Telephone number: Fax number: Email address: Provider web address:   renuka15@hotmail.com Name of registered provider(s): Conditions of registration: Category(ies) : old age, not falling within any other category Conditions of registration: Mrs Renuka Oojageer,Mr Mookesh Oojageer Number of places (if applicable): Under 65 Over 65 0 15 The maximum number of service users to be accommodated is 15 The registered person may provide the following category of service only : Care home only (PC) to service users of the following gender: Either whose primary care needs on admission to the home are within the following category: Old age, not falling within any other category (OP) Have there been any changes in the ownership, management or the No service’s registration details in the last 12 months? If yes, what have they been: Date of last key inspection: Date of last annual service review (if applicable): Brief description of the service Elm Lea (the Service) is registered to provide accommodation and personal care for fifteen older people. The premises are a two storey detached older building. All of the people who live in the Service can have their own bedroom. Each bedroom has got a private toilet and wash hand basin. Each also has a television point and a telephone point. At the moment, three people have chosen to install a private telephone. There is Annual Service Review Page 2 of 7 2 2 0 8 2 0 0 8 a call point in each of the bedrooms. This makes it easier for staff to be called if someone needs assistance. There is a passenger lift between the floors. There are various things to help people who have problems getting about. For example there are hoists in the bathrooms and sensible things like banister rails. At the back of the Service, there is an attractive enclosed garden. The Service is in a quiet residential area. There are some local shops nearby. There is a bus stop within walking distance. There is some off street car parking. The Registered Providers are private individuals. They are responsible in law for the running of the Service. One of them is also the Registered Manager. She calls to the Service most weekdays and takes a direct role managing day to day things. She is supported in this by the Deputy Manager. Information about the fees charged and what is included can be obtained from the Manager. Annual Service Review Page 3 of 7 Service update since the last key inspection or annual service review: What did we do for this annual service review? We looked at all the information that we have received, or asked for, since the last Key Inspection. This included: The Annual Quality Assurance Assessment (the Assessment) that was sent to us by the Registered Provider. This is a self assessment that focuses on how well outcomes are being met for people using the Service. It also gives us some numerical information about the Service. Information that we have about how things are going in the Service. What the Registered Provider has told us about things that have happened in the Service. These are called notifications and are a legal requirement. The previous Key Inspection. Relevant information from other organisations. What other people have told us about the service. What has this told us about the service? The home sent us their annual quality assurance assessment (AQAA) when we asked for it. This gave us an overview of how they are doing and provided us with most of the information requested. However, there were gaps in relation to some of the things identified at our last inspection as needing improvement. Our last inspection indicated that they were ensuring good outcomes for the people living in the home. The people living there said that there was a relaxed and homely atmosphere, they had good food, the care workers were kind and attentive and they received the support that they needed. There were some things that were identified that could be done better. They needed to involve people more in the planning and reviewing of their care plans. Some people had said they wanted to have more social activities. A part of the recruitment process was not robust. Their quality assurance system needed to be developed and the fire safety system needed to be strengthened. The AQAA does not say if these things have been done and this is something that they need to think about when the next AQAA is due. The AQAA does indicate that they are continuing to look at ways of improving what they do to make sure that people living in the home continue to benefit from the service that they provide. The AQAA tells us they involve the people using their service by holding regular residents meetings and giving out questionnaires once a year. They say they have changed their menus as a result of residents suggestions and that the changes have proved popular. They plan to develop a web page to provide people with more information about the home. They say that the care plans have improved in the last twelve months, they are regularly reviewed and they now have a new pressure area assessment tool and Annual Service Review Page 4 of 7 nutrition assessment in place. They have not shown if they are involving people more in their care plans, but the AQAA does indicate that they continue to listen to people and collate information towards providing individual care. They say they have introduced more activities based around residents requests and that staff have become more involved. Their future plans include, to provide transport to take residents out more regularly and to continue to improve the key worker system. The AQAA indicates that there have not been any complaints received in the last twelve months. There has not been anything out of the ordinary that has caused us to be concerned. They say they have improved the way they recruit new staff in the last twelve months and now take up verbal references as well as written ones. This is an added security check, but one of the things raised in our last report was about the importance of obtaining a full employment history for all job applicants, to make sure that they have checked out a full account of what a person has done. The AQAA does not show if this is now being done. They do say that they plan to provide training for staff in the next twelve months on the protection of vulnerable adults. They indicate that they have an ongoing maintenance plan and they do weekly room checks to see if anything needs to be repaired or made safe. Odd jobs are then identified and prioritised. They have plans to redecorate one bedroom and replace the vanity unit in the forthcoming twelve months. They say they have a stable staff team with low absence levels. They have plans to provide a four weekly staff rota, in advance, in response to staff request. This will not only help with planning for the home, but will also enable staff to structure their own lives more easily. Our last inspection showed that they have a strong management team and the AQAA indicates that this has continued. They say that staffing levels are excellent, that infection control remains of a high standard, that records are much better filed and manageable and they have taken on board comments made at our last inspection. They have not indicated if they have made sure that staff have had the regular fire safety instruction that they should have. This was one of the things we raised at our last inspection. We feel that the AQAA could have better shown how they have acted upon the comments made at our last inspection and could have included more concrete examples to support some of the statements made. Our overall judgement is that they continue to provide a good quality of care for the people living in the home. What are we going to do as a result of this annual service review? Annual Service Review Page 5 of 7 We are not going to change our inspection plan and will do a key inspection by August 2010. However we can inspect the service at any time if we have concerns about the quality of the service or the safety of the people using the service. Annual Service Review Page 6 of 7 Reader Information Document Purpose: Author: Audience: Further copies from: Annual service review CQC General Public 0870 240 7535 (national contact centre) Our duty to regulate social care services is set out in the Care Standards Act 2000. The content of which can be found on our website. Helpline: Telephone: 03000 616161 Email: enquiries@cqc.org.uk Web: www.cqc.org.uk We want people to be able to access this information. If you would like a copy of the findings in a different format or language please contact our helpline or go to our website. Copyright © (2009) Care Quality Commission (CQC). This publication may be reproduced in whole or in part, free of charge, in any format or medium provided that it is not used for commercial gain. This consent is subject to the material being reproduced accurately and on proviso that it is not used in a derogatory manner or misleading context. 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