About the service:
The Firs is a residential care home that provides personal care for up to 28 people, some of whom are living with dementia. The accommodation is split over 3 floors, with a chair lift to the second floor. There are several communal areas with 3 lounges, a central foyer and a dining room. People’s bedrooms are on all three levels. There are several bathrooms and toilets throughout the building. At the time of inspection 24 people were using the service.
People’s experience of using this service:
People’s safety was not always recognised in relation to storage of COSHH (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health) products.
Systems of oversight were not sufficiently robust to have identified the issues we found in relation to storage of COSHH products and Medicines.
Medicines were not always being managed in line with current best practice. People received their medicines regularly; some systems were in place for administration of medication management.
People were given choice and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible. Staff engaged well with people and responded to their individual needs promptly. People were positive about the staff and told us their privacy and dignity were respected.
People’s needs had been assessed, plans developed, and care delivered, in line with good practice. Care was delivered by staff who were well trained and knowledgeable about people’s support needs. People said they felt involved in their care, supported in decision making and were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives. People were provided with a choice of varied diet and were complimentary about the food.
People were cared for by staff who knew how to keep them safe and protect them from avoidable harm. Sufficient staff were available to meet people’s needs and people told us staff responded promptly when they called them. Incidents and accidents were investigated, and actions taken to prevent re-occurrence. The premises were clean, and staff followed infection control and cleaning procedures.
There was a friendly, welcoming atmosphere for people using the service and they gave positive comments about the staff and care provided. People, relatives and staff spoke positively about the registered manager, felt able to raise concerns and were confident that they would be addressed.
Systems were in place to drive and improve the level of service. Staff had developed good positive working relationships with other services. Staff were safely recruited and received the training and support needed to undertake their role.
The previous rating had been displayed in the foyer of the home, however had been removed at the time of our inspection. The registered manager printed another copy and assured us, they would find a way to secure this for display. The manager understood their responsibility of registration with us and notified us of important events that occurred which meant we could check that appropriate actions had been taken.
Rating at last inspection: Good (report published 10/02/2017). The overall rating has remained the same.
Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection based on the rating at the last inspection.
Follow up: We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about this service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received, we may inspect sooner.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk