Care Home: Alsager Court Care Centre

What has improved since the last inspection? Significant progress has been made in improving the administration, management and recording of medication. This has helped to make sure that the people living at the home receive their medicines safely, as prescribed by their doctors to help them keep well. More staff have been employed by the home so agency staff no longer have to be used and the people living at Alsager Court now receive a better continuity of care from staff who know them. What the care home could do better: We recommended that consideration should be given to producing the information leaflet about how the home works in a range of formats to make it easier for people to understand. We also suggested that residents` meetings should be run again so that people living at the home had the chance to say what they think about the way the home is run. We recommended that the policies and procedures should be reviewed each year so they provide staff with up to date guidance and that information about the Care Quality Commission should be updated. At the time of our visit, the computer in the home was not working so staff did not have access to policies, procedures, guidance and other documents they might need. We suggestedAlsager Court Care CentreDS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 7that paper copies of all key policies and procedures used in the home should be kept so that staff could use these when the computer was not available. Key inspection report CARE HOMES FOR OLDER PEOPLE Alsager Court Care Centre Sandbach Road North Church Lawton Stoke On Trent Staffordshire ST7 3RG Lead Inspector Maureen Brown Unannounced Inspection 15 April 2009 09:45 DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.do c Version 5.2 Page 1 This report is a review of the quality of outcomes that people experience in this care home. We believe high quality care should: • • • • • Be safe Have the right outcomes, including clinical outcomes Be a good experience for the people that use it Help prevent illness, and promote healthy, independent living Be available to those who need it when they need it. We review the quality of the service against outcomes from the National Minimum Standards (NMS). Those standards are written by the Department of Health for each type of care service. Copies of the National Minimum Standards – Care homes for older people can be found at www.dh.gov.uk or bought from The Stationery Office (TSO) PO Box 29, St Crispins, Duke Street, Norwich, NR3 1GN. Tel: 0870 600 5522. Online ordering from the Stationery Office is also available: www.tso.co.uk/bookshop. The mission of the Care Quality Commission is to make care better for people by: • Regulating health and adult social care services to ensure quality and safety standards, drive improvement and stamp out bad practice • Protecting the rights of people who use services, particularly the most vulnerable and those detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 • Providing accessible, trustworthy information on the quality of care and services so people can make better decisions about their care and so that commissioners and providers of services can improve services. • Providing independent public accountability on how commissioners and providers of services are improving the quality of care and providing value for money. Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 2 Reader Information Document Purpose Author Audience Further copies from Copyright Inspection Report Care Quality Commission General Public 0870 240 7535 (telephone order line) 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. The material should be acknowledged as CQC copyright, with the title and date of publication of the document specified. www.cqc.org.uk Internet address Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 3 SERVICE INFORMATION Name of service Alsager Court Care Centre Address Sandbach Road North Church Lawton Stoke On Trent Staffordshire ST7 3RG 08453 455743 01270 883256 helen.haughton@blanchworth.co.uk WWW.Blanchworth.co.uk Mrs Sally Anne Manby Roberts Mr Jeremy Walsh Mrs Sylvia June Knox Care Home 27 Telephone number Fax number Email address Provider Web address Name of registered provider(s)/company (if applicable) Name of registered manager (if applicable) Type of registration No. of places registered (if applicable) Category(ies) of Dementia - over 65 years of age (7), Old age, registration, with number not falling within any other category (27) of places Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 4 SERVICE INFORMATION Conditions of registration: 1 The registered person may provide the following category/ies of service only: Care home with nursing - Code N to service users of the following gender: Either whose primary care needs on admission to the home are within the following categories: Old age, not falling within any other category - Code OP (maximum number of places: 27) Dementia, over 65 years of age - Code DE(E) (maximum number of places: 7) The maximum number of service users who can be accommodated is: 27 2 The following bedrooms are excluded for the provision of care with nursing (N): 3, 7, 8, 24 8 May 2008 Date of last inspection Brief Description of the Service: Alsager Court Care Centre is a twenty-seven bedded care home for older people. Up to a maximum of 15 residents may have nursing needs and up to a maximum of 7 residents may be over 65 years of age and have dementia care needs. The home is situated off a main road in a residential area of Church Lawton, near Alsager. It provides ground floor accommodation and is set within two acres of landscaped gardens. There are 24 single rooms and 2 rooms which could be shared to provide a maximum of 27 places. Sixteen of the rooms have en-suite facilities. The current owners took over the running of the home in September 2001. Each person living at the home is provided with a written contract which specific information relating to their room, the fees and any additional cost and the terms and conditions. Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 5 SUMMARY This is an overview of what the inspector found during the inspection. The overall quality rating for this service is 2 stars. This means that the people who use the service experience good quality outcomes. This unannounced visit took place on 15 April 2009 and lasted six and a half hours. This was to assess if the residents’ needs were being met at the home. The visit was done by one inspector. The report refers to ‘we’ as it is written on behalf of the Care Quality Commission. Our visit was just one part of the inspection. Before the visit, the manager of the home was asked to complete a questionnaire to provide up to date information about the home. Questionnaires were also made available to people living in the home and to staff members so they could let us know what they thought about the home. Information received since our last visit to the home was considered. During our visit to Alsager Court we spoke with people who live there and they told us about their experiences of living there. We also spoke with the manager and with members of staff who were on duty at the time of our visit. People’s views about the home are included throughout the report. What the service does well: Staff members know the people they care for very well. There is a family type atmosphere, which encourages positive relationships between staff members, people living at the home and their relatives. People receive respectful care so their privacy and dignity is maintained. The home is well maintained so it provides a welcoming, bright and comfortable environment for the people who live there. Staff turnover is low and staff members are provided with appropriate training to help them develop their skills and knowledge to enable them to do their jobs well. Complaints are few and are well managed so people can be confident their concerns will be listened to and acted upon. People who use the service commented, “The home is always fresh and clean. I usually receive the support and care I need”, “The home does everything well. I always like the meals at the home”, “I always receive the care and Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 6 support I need. I get well looked after and kept busy with activities I enjoy. It can’t get any better”, “I usually like the meals at the home. The staff keep me clean and tidy and feed me”, “I always receive the support I need. The home is always fresh and clean.” Relatives commented “The staff have the right skills to support my relative. I am always kept up to date with information about my relative” and “The home usually meets the needs of my relative. The home usually supports my relative to live the life they choose.” Staff commented: “We take care of the residents the best way we can”; “The manager is very supportive by giving me help and advises in any situation. We always do our best to provide the best possible care for the residents”; “Staff work well as a team, meeting all needs of clients, keeping up a happy environment for service users and helping each other with any difficulties. Service users and staff are both well supported” and “The service is good and staff do their duties as best as they can. Most of the staff are reliable and practicing good and safe care practice. They apply their knowledge of health and safety well.” Other comments included, “The care of the residents is good and the home is clean and tidy. Working as a team makes everything easy” and “My induction was very good and I am given training relevant to my job.” What has improved since the last inspection? What they could do better: We recommended that consideration should be given to producing the information leaflet about how the home works in a range of formats to make it easier for people to understand. We also suggested that residents’ meetings should be run again so that people living at the home had the chance to say what they think about the way the home is run. We recommended that the policies and procedures should be reviewed each year so they provide staff with up to date guidance and that information about the Care Quality Commission should be updated. At the time of our visit, the computer in the home was not working so staff did not have access to policies, procedures, guidance and other documents they might need. We suggested Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 7 that paper copies of all key policies and procedures used in the home should be kept so that staff could use these when the computer was not available. If you want to know what action the person responsible for this care home is taking following this report, you can contact them using the details on page 4. The report of this inspection is available from our website www.cqc.org.uk. You can get printed copies from enquiries@cqc.org.uk or by telephoning our order line – 0870 240 7535. Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 8 DETAILS OF INSPECTOR FINDINGS CONTENTS Choice of Home (Standards 1–6) Health and Personal Care (Standards 7-11) Daily Life and Social Activities (Standards 12-15) Complaints and Protection (Standards 16-18) Environment (Standards 19-26) Staffing (Standards 27-30) Management and Administration (Standards 31-38) Scoring of Outcomes Statutory Requirements Identified During the Inspection Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 9 Choice of Home The intended outcomes for Standards 1 – 6 are: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Prospective service users have the information they need to make an informed choice about where to live. Each service user has a written contract/ statement of terms and conditions with the home. No service user moves into the home without having had his/her needs assessed and been assured that these will be met. Service users and their representatives know that the home they enter will meet their needs. Prospective service users and their relatives and friends have an opportunity to visit and assess the quality, facilities and suitability of the home. Service users assessed and referred solely for intermediate care are helped to maximise their independence and return home. The Commission considers Standards 3 and 6 the key standards to be inspected. This is what people staying in this care home experience: JUDGEMENT – we looked at outcomes for the following standard(s): 1, 3 and 6 People using the service experience good quality outcomes in this area. We have made this judgement using a range of evidence, including a visit to this service. There is enough information available about Alsager Court and people’s needs are checked before they move in so they know their needs can be met at the home. EVIDENCE: The information leaflets that tell people who Alsager Court is for, what it does and how it works (the statement of purpose and service user guide) were in a ring binder, with a copy kept near the front door. This also contained a copy of the latest inspection report on Alsager Court done by the commission. The information leaflets were written in plain English and were printed in standard type. They had been reviewed in February 2009 to make sure they were up to date and included all the information people living at the home, people Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 10 interested in moving in and the relatives might need. There was a resident’s charter, information about the home owner and the manager, and information about how to make complaints or raise concerns about the home. We made a recommendation that consideration should be given to producing this information in other formats, such as large print and audio, to make it easier for people to understand. When we spoke with people who live at Alsager Court, some of them were able to tell us that they were involved in planning their own care. This means that they have a say in how their care is provided so it can be done in the way they prefer. Staff we spoke with showed they knew about the needs of the people living at the home and how these should be met. When we looked at some care files, we found that staff from the home had checked the person’s needs before they moved in. The checks covered a range of information including the person’s personal and healthcare needs and how they liked to spend their time. This helped to make sure that the person knew their needs could be met at Alsager Court before they moved in. There was also information from social workers and other professionals who were involved in providing care for the person so that staff could make sure the person was receiving the support and care they needed as soon as they moved into the home. The manager confirmed that intermediate care was not provided at Alsager Court. Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 11 Health and Personal Care The intended outcomes for Standards 7 – 11 are: 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. The service user’s health, personal and social care needs are set out in an individual plan of care. Service users’ health care needs are fully met. Service users, where appropriate, are responsible for their own medication, and are protected by the home’s policies and procedures for dealing with medicines. Service users feel they are treated with respect and their right to privacy is upheld. Service users are assured that at the time of their death, staff will treat them and their family with care, sensitivity and respect. The Commission considers Standards 7, 8, 9 and 10 the key standards to be inspected. This is what people staying in this care home experience: JUDGEMENT – we looked at outcomes for the following standard(s): 7, 8, 9 and 10 People using the service experience good quality outcomes in this area. We have made this judgement using a range of evidence, including a visit to this service. The health, personal and social care needs of the people who live at Alsager Court are met by staff in such a way that their privacy and dignity is respected. EVIDENCE: We looked at the care files of four of the twenty one people living at the home at the time of our visit. This was to check what their care needs were and how these were being met. The files we saw contained all the information needed for staff to make sure that people’s needs were met. The care plans were well organised so that staff could find information easily. They were clearly written and covered all the necessary areas so that staff had good information to refer to. The daily records about each person were good; staff had written down changes to people, information of what they had done each day and details of Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 12 their visitors. This provided a good picture of people’s day to day progress to show that their health and wellbeing was being monitored. All the care plans we looked at had been reviewed to make sure they were still effective in meeting people’s needs. Many people living at Alsager Court could not tell us whether they had been involved in planning and reviewing their own care. However, they were able to tell us that staff helped them when they needed it, such as with any care support they might need. They told us, “I am happy in the home” and “I always get the care and support I need”. Some people living at the home or their families were able to tell us that they were involved in planning and reviewing their own care to make sure their needs were being met in the way they preferred. We saw that checks had been made about risks to people living at the home and these were included in their care files. For example, checks about people’s risks of falling and risks about them moving around had been made. These documents contained information for staff on how to make sure that these risks were reduced so that people would be safe. Other checks on risk had been made depending on the person’s individual needs, for example on nutrition, having a key to their room and looking after their own medicines. All the checks on risk we saw had been kept up to date. The medication system used at Alsager Court is a monitored dosage system. The medicines are stored in a trolley that is kept securely when it is not being used. Any unused medicines are returned to the pharmacist each month to make sure stocks do not build up and mistakes in giving medicines are not made. Staff have received training about medicines and how to give them safely; staff files that we looked at showed us that this training had taken place to make sure that staff understood how to give medicines safely, without making errors. This helps to make sure that people receive their medicines as their doctors have prescribed. We saw the manager helping people with their medicines at lunchtime on the day of our visit. She knew how each person preferred to take the medicines and she followed good procedures to make sure that mistakes were not made. There were records in the care files we saw of visits made to people living at Alsager Court by healthcare professionals such as GPs, district nurses, optician and the chiropodist. This showed us that the healthcare needs of people living at the home were being monitored and that they received regular visits to make sure their healthcare needs were being met. During our visit, we observed the lunchtime meal being served. We saw that staff were attentive to people to make sure they received the food they preferred and that they gave help to those who needed it. The general atmosphere within the home was warm and friendly. The cook told us that she helped serve the meal and she knew what people’s preferences were, including the size of meal they preferred. This meant that people did not receive a meal that was too small or too large for their appetite. Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 13 Daily Life and Social Activities The intended outcomes for Standards 12 - 15 are: 12. 13. 14. 15. Service users find the lifestyle experienced in the home matches their expectations and preferences, and satisfies their social, cultural, religious and recreational interests and needs. Service users maintain contact with family/ friends/ representatives and the local community as they wish. Service users are helped to exercise choice and control over their lives. Service users receive a wholesome appealing balanced diet in pleasing surroundings at times convenient to them. The Commission considers all of the above key standards to be inspected. This is what people staying in this care home experience: JUDGEMENT – we looked at outcomes for the following standard(s): 12, 13, 14 and 15 People using the service experience good quality outcomes in this area. We have made this judgement using a range of evidence, including a visit to this service. People who live at Alsager Court are able to take part in a range of activities and staff helped them to keep in touch with their families and friends. This means that people were able to keep active, keep up their social lives and keep in touch with their loved ones. EVIDENCE: An activities organiser had recently started working in the home for thirty hours a week. She told us that she had started to build up information about what people living at Alsager Court liked to do and she also asked them each day what they would like to do. There is an activities programme each week, with two activities each day. At the time of our visit, regular activities included coffee mornings, quizzes, arts and crafts, board games, exercise to music, bingo, ball games and individual activities with staff. Records were being kept of activities people took part in. At the time of our visit, there were no trips out organised but these were being planned for the summer when the weather Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 14 was warmer. The mobile library called at the home each week, as does a hairdresser. People from local churches also visit people who live at the home and services are held in the home for those who like to attend. People living at Alsager Court told us that there were usually activities available that they liked to take part in. They also received visits from families and friends. These visits were recorded in each person’s daily records so that staff could make sure that people living at the home were receiving the support they needed to keep in touch with their loved ones. People who live at the home were offered choices in various ways, such as in the time they get up in the morning and retire to bed at night, by choosing the clothes they wear; by deciding whether or not to join in planned activities and by deciding how they wished to be addressed. We saw examples of menus provided at the home which showed that traditional style dishes are available. The cook uses a four week menu cycle to make sure that a varied diet is provided for the people living at the home. On the day of our visit, we saw lunch being served. The staff served the meal and a variety of drinks were available to suit people’s preferences. The dining room is a pleasant space for people to sit down and eat in. After lunch, people who live at the home told us they had enjoyed the food. They told us that they like the meals provided at the home. We could see from the menus that an alternative choice of meal was available each day. Drinks were being provided throughout the day. This helps to make sure that people receive the food and fluid they need to keep as healthy as possible. Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 15 Complaints and Protection The intended outcomes for Standards 16 - 18 are: 16. 17. 18. Service users and their relatives and friends are confident that their complaints will be listened to, taken seriously and acted upon. Service users’ legal rights are protected. Service users are protected from abuse. The Commission considers Standards 16 and 18 the key standards to be. This is what people staying in this care home experience: JUDGEMENT – we looked at outcomes for the following standard(s): 16 and 18 People using the service experience good quality outcomes in this area. We have made this judgement using a range of evidence, including a visit to this service. People who live at Alsager Court and their relatives told us they were satisfied with the support they received from the manager and staff. There were clear policies in place to make sure that people living at the home were safeguarded from abuse and harm. EVIDENCE: The staff files we looked at showed that staff had received training on safeguarding adults to make sure they know what to do to protect the people who live at the home from harm. The manager knew the local authority safeguarding procedures and there was a policy at the home on whistle blowing to guide staff on how they could report poor practice or harm. Since our last visit, one referral has been made from the home under the local authority safeguarding processes, which were followed correctly at the home to make sure people were safeguarded. We saw the complaints procedure for the home and checked that it contained all the necessary information for people on how they could raise complaints and concerns. It also showed how these would be dealt with so that people could be confident that any concerns they had about the home would be taken Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 16 seriously. One complaint had been made to the manager since our last visit to the home; this had been dealt with to the complainant’s satisfaction. The commission has not received any complaints about this home. People living there told us that they would contact the manager if they had any concerns or problems. Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 17 Environment The intended outcomes for Standards 19 – 26 are: 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. Service users live in a safe, well-maintained environment. Service users have access to safe and comfortable indoor and outdoor communal facilities. Service users have sufficient and suitable lavatories and washing facilities. Service users have the specialist equipment they require to maximise their independence. Service users’ own rooms suit their needs. Service users live in safe, comfortable bedrooms with their own possessions around them. Service users live in safe, comfortable surroundings. The home is clean, pleasant and hygienic. The Commission considers Standards 19 and 26 the key standards to be inspected. This is what people staying in this care home experience: JUDGEMENT – we looked at outcomes for the following standard(s): 19 and 26 People using the service experience good quality outcomes in this area. We have made this judgement using a range of evidence, including a visit to this service. Alsager Court is well maintained so the people who live there live in safe, clean and comfortable surroundings. EVIDENCE: During our visit, we walked round the home to see all the communal rooms and some of the bedrooms. There was a variety of shared space available including the dining area, various lounges and areas around the home where seating was placed. The home was clean and free from unpleasant smells. People had made their rooms more personal by using their own furniture, pictures and mementoes. The home was in a good state of repair and that the décor was good. The manager told us that in the year since our last visit, Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 18 twelve bedrooms, the corridors, dining room and lounge had been redecorated. There is a rolling programme of work being done in the home by the maintenance person who works there. The manager also told us that as the redecoration of the corridors had been completed, the stained corridor carpets we saw were due to be replaced in the two months after our visit. People living at Alsager Court confirmed that they liked their bedrooms, saying that “I like my room” and “The home is fresh and clean”. We found that the home was light, airy and warm. People living there told us that it was warm enough for them. Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 19 Staffing The intended outcomes for Standards 27 – 30 are: 27. 28. 29. 30. Service users’ needs are met by the numbers and skill mix of staff. Service users are in safe hands at all times. Service users are supported and protected by the home’s recruitment policy and practices. Staff are trained and competent to do their jobs. The Commission consider all the above are key standards to be inspected. This is what people staying in this care home experience: JUDGEMENT – we looked at outcomes for the following standard(s): 27, 28, 29 and 30 People using the service experience good quality outcomes in this area. We have made this judgement using a range of evidence, including a visit to this service. Thorough recruitment processes are used for appointing new staff to make sure that people living at Alsager Court are protected from possible harm. Staff receive training to make sure they have the skills and knowledge to provide good quality care support for people living at the home. EVIDENCE: The staff rotas we saw showed the number of staff on duty over the week. There appeared to be enough staff on duty throughout the week to make sure that the needs of the people living at Alsager Court were met. People living in the home confirmed that there were enough staff around to help them when they needed it. During our visit we saw that staff were attentive in meeting people’s needs. Staff files are stored securely at the head office of the company that runs the home. However, all the information in them is available for the manager to check on the computer system. We looked at three files to see how staff had been recruited. Those we saw showed that a full range of checks, including identity checks and Criminal Record Bureau checks, references, health checks Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 20 and completed application forms had been obtained before the member of staff started working in the home. These checks help to make sure that the staff member is suitable to work with the people who live at the home. The records we saw showed that staff training undertaken included fire safety, moving and handling, safeguarding adults, managing challenging behaviour and infection control. Specialist training included dementia awareness, administration of medication and palliative care. Further training planned over the year following our visit included care planning, end of life care, consent and capacity, nutritional tool awareness, depression and stress and pharmacy plus medication. This training helps to make sure that staff are competent and have the knowledge and skills they need to provide care support safely and well. Staff have made good progress with National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) level 2 in care. At the time of our visit, eleven out of nineteen staff had NVQ level II or above, and recently recruited staff had been signed up to start NVQ level II. These are nationally recognised qualifications for staff working in the field of social care. They show that staff are competent to carry out a range of care and support tasks in line with current good practice. People who live at Alsager Court told us, “The staff are always available when I need them”, “We have very caring staff” and “The staff group are very caring”. Regular staff meetings are held and the most recent one before our visit was in April 2009. These meetings give staff the chance to express their views about the home and to make sure they have relevant information about processes within the home. Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 21 Management and Administration The intended outcomes for Standards 31 – 38 are: 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. Service users live in a home which is run and managed by a person who is fit to be in charge, of good character and able to discharge his or her responsibilities fully. Service users benefit from the ethos, leadership and management approach of the home. The home is run in the best interests of service users. Service users are safeguarded by the accounting and financial procedures of the home. Service users’ financial interests are safeguarded. Staff are appropriately supervised. Service users’ rights and best interests are safeguarded by the home’s record keeping, policies and procedures. The health, safety and welfare of service users and staff are promoted and protected. The Commission considers Standards 31, 33, 35 and 38 the key standards to be inspected. This is what people staying in this care home experience: JUDGEMENT – we looked at outcomes for the following standard(s): 31, 33, 35, 36 and 38. People using the service experience good quality outcomes in this area. We have made this judgement using a range of evidence, including a visit to this service. The home is well managed so that the health, safety and welfare of the people who live there are protected. Action is taken to obtain the views of the people living at Alsager Court to make sure they have a say in how it is run and that it is run in their best interests. EVIDENCE: The manager has over 10 years experience of working in care settings in a senior role. She has been the manager of Alsager Court since December 2003. Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 22 There was a quality assurance process for Alsager Court. We saw information that satisfaction surveys had been distributed to people living at the home in June 2009. Their responses had been summarised and a copy of the summary was included in the information about the home to show what people living there think about it. The manager also does regular checks to make sure that things are running well in the home. These include checking the medications to make sure they are being given correctly, spot checks of rooms to make sure they are clean and in good condition, and checks of care plans to make sure they have everything in them they should have and they are being kept up to date. We saw records to show that the manager’s checks were being done regularly. We noted that residents’ meetings had not been happening and recommended that these should be started again so that people living at the home had the chance to express their views about the way it was run. A representative of the company that runs the home visits each month to check on how it is running. We saw a record of a visit that took place in January 2009 when no specific problems had been noted. The manager told us that money is kept on behalf of some of the people who live at the home. We saw that this was kept securely and that appropriate records were kept to make sure that balances were correct. We checked records about health and safety. Up to date gas safety and electrical wiring safety certificates were in place. There were policies and procedures available to provide staff with guidance on safe working practices including a range of risk assessments, guidance on working with hazardous substances, moving and handling, health and safety, food safety and first aid. We suggested that a paper copy of the key policies and procedures for the home should be kept so that staff could find guidance they might need when the computer is not available. The fire safety logbook showed that tests of alarms and emergency lighting had been carried out and that regular fire safety training and drills were done so that staff would know what to do to keep people safe if fire broke out. We looked at the accident records and these had been completed correctly. Day to day supervision of the staff was good and formal, recorded staff supervision is completed regularly. This helps to make sure that staff have the support they need and the chance to discuss any problems or guidance they might need. Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 23 SCORING OF OUTCOMES This page summarises the assessment of the extent to which the National Minimum Standards for Care Homes for Older People have been met and uses the following scale. The scale ranges from: 4 Standard Exceeded 2 Standard Almost Met (Commendable) (Minor Shortfalls) 3 Standard Met 1 Standard Not Met (No Shortfalls) (Major Shortfalls) “X” in the standard met box denotes standard not assessed on this occasion “N/A” in the standard met box denotes standard not applicable CHOICE OF HOME Standard No Score 1 2 3 4 5 6 ENVIRONMENT Standard No Score 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 3 X 3 X X N/A HEALTH AND PERSONAL CARE Standard No Score 7 3 8 3 9 3 10 3 11 X DAILY LIFE AND SOCIAL ACTIVITIES Standard No Score 12 3 13 3 14 3 15 3 COMPLAINTS AND PROTECTION Standard No Score 16 3 17 X 18 3 3 X X X X X X 3 STAFFING Standard No Score 27 3 28 3 29 3 30 3 MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION Standard No 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 Score 3 X 3 X 3 3 X 3 Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 24 Are there any outstanding requirements from the last inspection? No STATUTORY REQUIREMENTS This section sets out the actions, which must be taken so that the registered person/s meets the Care Standards Act 2000, Care Homes Regulations 2001 and the National Minimum Standards. The Registered Provider(s) must comply with the given timescales. No. Standard Regulation Requirement Timescale for action RECOMMENDATIONS These recommendations relate to National Minimum Standards and are seen as good practice for the Registered Provider/s to consider carrying out. No. 1 Refer to Standard OP1 Good Practice Recommendations Consideration should be given to producing the information leaflets about the home (the service users’ guide) in other formats such as large print and audio versions so it easier for people to understand. The residents’ meetings should be started again so that the people who live in the home have the opportunity to voice their opinions and have the opportunity to have a say in how the home is run. The policies and procedures should be reviewed annually to make sure the guidance in them is up to date and the information about the Care Quality Commission needs to be updated. A paper copy of all the key policies and procedures for the home should be kept for staff to refer to when the computer is not available. 2 OP33 3 OP33 Alsager Court Care Centre DS0000006648.V375044.R01.S.doc Version 5.2 Page 25 Care Quality Commission Care Quality Commission Unit 1 Tustin Court Port Way Preston PR2 2YQ National Enquiry Line: 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 summary 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. 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