Care Home: Avalon Care Home

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What the care home does well Regular medicines audits (checks) are carried out to help ensure that medicines are safely handled and that should any weaknesses arise they can be promptly addressed. What the care home could do better: To reduce the risk of mistakes care needs to be taken to ensure that verbal changes to peoples medicines are promptly followed-up and where necessary, clarified. Random inspection report Care homes for older people Name: Address: Avalon Care Home 24 Duke Street Southport Merseyside PR8 1LW two star good service 21/04/2009 The quality rating for this care home is: The rating was made on: 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. This is a report of a random inspection of this care home. A random inspection is a short, focussed review of the service. Details of how to get other inspection reports for this care home, including the last key inspection report, can be found on the last page of this report. Lead inspector: Stephanie West Date: 1 2 0 1 2 0 1 0 Information about the care home Name of care home: Address: Avalon Care Home 24 Duke Street Southport Merseyside PR8 1LW 01704541203 Telephone number: Fax number: Email address: Provider web address: Name of registered provider(s): Type of registration: Number of places registered: Conditions of registration: Category(ies) : Avalon Residential Homes Ltd care home 20 Number of places (if applicable): Under 65 Over 65 20 1 3 dementia mental disorder, excluding learning disability or dementia old age, not falling within any other category Conditions of registration: 0 0 0 The registered person may provide the following category 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: Old age, not falling within any other category: Code OP (maximum number of places: 3). Dementia over 65 years of age: Code DE(E) (maximum number of places: 20). Mental disorder, excluding learning disability or dementia over 65 years of age: Code MD(E) (maximum number of places: 1) The maximum number of service users who can be accommodated is: 20. Date of last inspection 1 5 0 9 2 0 0 9 Care Homes for Older People Page 2 of 8 Brief description of the care home Avalon Residential Care Homes Ltd purchased Avalon care home in July 2004. Avalon is a Residential Care Home, which provides personal care and support for up to twenty elderly residents. Ann Wilson manages the home. The home is a large detached converted house, set in a residential area, within walking distance of all the amenities of the town of Southport. Access to the town can be made via the local transport services where necessary. A lift provides access to all floors of the home. There is a spacious lounge, dining room and quiet room. Steps from the main front door lead to the garden and there is also wheelchair access to the garden from the lower ground floor. Fees for the service are currently charged at 383 pounds per week. Care Homes for Older People Page 3 of 8 What we found: This visit was carried out to look at the homes medication arrangements in follow-up to our previous visit. The visit lasted approximately two and a half hours and involved discussing the handling of medication with the manager and senior staff, examination of medicine records and storage arrangements. This visit focused on medicines handling, other areas and requirements were not examined at this time. At the end of the visit feedback was given to the manager. We found that action had been taken to address weaknesses identified at out previous visit and regular in house audits (checks) were carried out to help ensure that medicines are handled in accordance with procedures. We looked at how medicines were administered. All medicines were administered by staff who had completed training in the safe handling of medicines, with further refresher training planned to help staff keep up-to-date. We found that arrangements were in place to help ensure medicines were given at the right times of day with consideration given to special label instructions such as before food. Where medicines were prescribed when required there was some written guidance for staff about when they may be needed and how this need may be communicated. But, this could be usefully linked to the more detailed information within peoples care plans. This is particularly important when people may find it difficult to tell staff about their medicines needs. The home is reviewing the arrangements for homely remedies so that non-prescribed medicines for the treatment of minor ailments can be given. This benefits people at the service as they can receive treatment for conditions such as minor pain without delay. We looked at medicines stocks and record keeping. We found recent records of receipt, administration and disposal to be generally clear and accurate, helping to support and evidence the safe handling of medication. The manager audits (checks) medicines stocks helping to ensure sufficient medicine stocks are maintained, without overstocking. These checks need to continue as we saw occasional examples, where people were at risk of missing doses because there was insufficient in stock to last the month. Records for communication with doctors and other healthcare professionals were mostly good and most changes to medication could be tracked. We saw that residents doctors often confirmed medicines changes in writing so that staff had clear instructions, reducing the risk of errors. But, we saw one example where although medicines were correctly administered as labelled, the homes record of advice did not match with an entry on the medicines administration record. Care needs to be taken to ensure that verbal instructions are followed-up and any uncertainties confirmed. We looked at medicines storage and found that medicines including controlled drugs were stored securely, this helps to ensure that they are not misused or mishandled. What the care home does well: What they could do better: To reduce the risk of mistakes care needs to be taken to ensure that verbal changes to peoples medicines are promptly followed-up and where necessary, clarified. Care Homes for Older People Page 4 of 8 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 set out on page 2. Care Homes for Older People Page 5 of 8 Are there any outstanding requirements from the last inspection? Yes R No £ Outstanding statutory requirements These are requirements that were set at the previous inspection, but have still not been met. They say what the registered person had to do to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, Regulations 2001 and the National Minimum Standards. No. Standard Regulation Requirement Timescale for action 1 26 18 Staff require dementia care training This will ensure they have the skills and knowledge to provide care for dementia and its associated illnesses. 21/07/2009 2 26 18 Staff require training in moving and handling, first aid, food hygiene and infection control. This will ensure they have the skills and knowledge to provide care and support to residents safely. 21/07/2009 Care Homes for Older People Page 6 of 8 Requirements and recommendations from this inspection: Immediate requirements: These are immediate requirements that were set on the day we visited this care home. The registered person had to meet these within 48 hours. No. Standard Regulation Requirement Timescale for action Statutory requirements These requirements set out what the registered person must do to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, Regulations 2001 and the National Minimum Standards. The registered person(s) must do this within the timescales we have set. No. Standard Regulation Requirement Timescale for action Recommendations These recommendations are taken from the best practice described in the National Minimum Standards and the registered person(s) should consider them as a way of improving their service. No Refer to Standard Good Practice Recommendations 1 9 Care needs to be taken to check records of healthcare advice when changes are made to peoples medicine to help ensure any uncertainties are promptly addressed. Care Homes for Older People Page 7 of 8 Reader Information Document Purpose: Author: Audience: Further copies from: Inspection Report Care Quality Commission General Public 0870 240 7535 (telephone order line) Our duty to regulate social care services is set out in the Care Standards Act 2000. Copies of the National Minimum Standards –Care Homes for Older People can be found at www.dh.gov.uk or got 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 Helpline: Telephone: 03000 616161 Email: enquiries@cqc.org.uk Web: www.cqc.org.uk We want people to be able to access this information. 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