Archived: Rusthall Respite

Updated 14 August 2019

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

Rusthall Respite is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection. The service provided respite care to people which meant people stayed at the service for short breaks only.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

What we did before the inspection

We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections.

We reviewed the information we held about the service including previous inspection reports. We also looked at notifications about important events that had taken place in the service, which the provider is required to tell us by law.

We contacted health and social care professionals to obtain feedback about their experience of the service. These professionals included local authority commissioners and Healthwatch. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. Healthwatch told us they had not been to the service and had not received any information or concerns. We did not receive any feedback from local authority commissioners. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with one person who used the service about their experience of the care provided. One person was not able to verbally express their experiences of staying at the service. We observed staff interactions with people and observed care and support in communal areas.

We spoke with five staff including; senior care staff, the registered manager, the service improvement manager and the regional operational manager.

We reviewed a range of records. This included two people’s personal records, care plans and people’s medicines charts, risk assessments, staff rotas and two staff recruitment records. We also reviewed a variety of records relating to the management of the service; audits, policies and procedures and meeting minutes were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the management team to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records. After the inspection we gained feedback from one relative about their family member’s care and support.

Updated 14 August 2019

About the service

Rusthall Respite is a small residential care home providing personal and nursing care to two adults with learning disabilities at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to five adults with dementia, learning disabilities or autistic spectrum disorder, physical disabilities or sensory impairments.

The service has been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensures that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence. People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People enjoyed having a respite stay at Rusthall Respite. This was evidenced by observations of people staying and through photographs of people smiling and having fun. A relative told us their loved one, “Is always happy about going there and chats about it when he comes back.”

People had access to a wide range of different activities throughout their stay both inside and outside of the service.

People’s care centred around their needs and preferences. Staff treated each person with compassion and kindness, and continuously used feedback either verbally or based on their observations of people to improve the service.

People were safe staying at Rusthall Respite; accidents and incidents were minimal, and staff worked to reduce the likelihood of issues reoccurring. People had been supported to take their medicines as prescribed in order to maintain their health.

People received good care and support. Staff had the knowledge and training to protect people from abuse and avoidable harm. Risks to people were identified, and when incidents and accidents occurred they were investigated appropriately and learnt from.

People had choice over their care and support and their dignity and privacy was respected by staff. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

The service applied the principles and values of Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These ensure that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes that include control, choice and independence.

The outcomes for people using the service reflected the principles and values of Registering the Right Support by promoting choice and control, independence and inclusion. People's support focused on them having as many opportunities as possible for them to gain new skills and become more independent.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was Good at a comprehensive inspection which was carried out on 12 December 2016 (published 07 January 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.