Inspection on 21/10/09 for The Orchards
Also see our care home review for The Orchards for more information
This inspection was carried out on 21st October 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 Excellent.
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.
Annual service review
Name of Service: The Orchards The quality rating for this care home is: The rating was made on: three star excellent service 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: Marie Cordingley Date of this annual service review: 1 4 0 9 2 0 0 9 Annual Service Review Page 1 of 6 Information about the service
Address of service: 140/142 Birkrig Skelmersdale Lancashire WN8 9HY 01695726118 01257450630 theorchards@autismcareuk.com Telephone number: Fax number: Email address: Provider web address:
Name of registered provider(s): Conditions of registration: Category(ies) : learning disability Conditions of registration: Dawaking Care Ltd Number of places (if applicable): Under 65 Over 65 7 0 The registered person may provide the following category/ies of service only: Care home only - Code PC to service users of the following gender: Either whose primary care needs on admission to the home are within the following categories: Learning disability - Code LD The maximum number of service users who can be accommodated is: 7 Have there been any changes in the ownership, management or the Yes 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 The Orchards is a large end terraced house comprising of two properties in the Digmoor area of Skelmersdale. It is close to local shops and amenities. The home has been extended and adapted to provide long term care for seven people all of whom have a learning disability. People are accommodated in single rooms situated on three floors. The home is able to accommodate a person with a physical disability as it provides ramps to the front and rear of the home, a ground floor bedroom and a ground floor shower room. There is a separate kitchen, dining room and two lounges. A well-maintained garden can be accessed through the dining room. The registered manager has left the home. Annual Service Review Page 2 of 6 Annual Service Review Page 3 of 6 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 we have received or asked for since the last key inspection. This included; The Annual Quality Assurance Assessment (AQAA) that was sent to us by the service. The AQAA 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 such as staffing numbers and qualifications. Surveys completed and returned to us by people who live and work at the home. Information we have about how the service has managed any complaints. What the manager has told us about things that have happened in the home. These are called notifications and are a legal requirement. The previous key inspection and any other visits we have made to the home since the last 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 acting manager returned their AQAA to us within agreed timescales. This was completed to good standard and contained a good level of information. The AQAA demonstrated that the manager constantly monitors all aspects of the service and is able to identify areas for development. The manager expressed some good ideas in the AQAA for the future development of the service including making peoples care plans available in various formats to suit their needs and providing health action planning training for all staff. The acting manager was also able to demonstrate in their AQAA that the views of people who live at the home are taken into account when assessing quality and making plans for the development of the service. Example of how residents are involved in the running of the home were also provided. These included enabling residents to be involved in the recruitment of new staff and the holding of regular meetings with residents and staff. We received a number of completed surveys from people who live and work at the home. In general, people who responded were very positive about the service and comments included; We work well as a team to meet peoples individual needs. I get help to do things I wouldnt be able to do on my own. Annual Service Review Page 4 of 6 Staff listen to my problems and have time for me. However, a number of people who took part in our survey told us that they felt staffing levels at the home were not always adequate to meet peoples needs. One person wrote Sometimes we struggle because there are not enough of us, and another stated Staffing could be improved so that people are able to do more activities. We discussed these comments with the acting manner who advised us that the the home had experienced an unusually high turnover of staff since the last inspection and that this had resulted in staffing levels being affected whilst new staff were recruited. We advised the acting manager to review staffing levels in light of the comments we received. We have not received any concerns or complaints about the service since their last inspection and there have been no incidents within the home that have required us to follow safeguarding procedures. However, we have received several notifications about issues relating to the management of peoples medicines. We discussed this with the acting manager who advised us that she was monitoring medication stocks and records carefully due to the issues being identified. Due to discussions held with the acting manager we became aware that there had been changes to the management team which we had not been made aware of. We also found that the home has now been without a registered manager for several months. We have written to the provider and asked them to clarify current management arrangements and how they intend to go about recruiting a new manager. What are we going to do as a result of this annual service review? We have reviewed the next key inspection date for the service as a result of this Annual Service Review. Annual Service Review Page 5 of 6 Reader Information
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