We carried out an unannounced inspection of Maeres House on 14 August 2015.
The home was purpose built and provides support and accommodation for up to eight people with acquired brain injury, particularly those with complex physical disabilities. At the time of the inspection there were eight people living in the home.
There was a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
Prior to our inspection we received feedback from the local authority quality monitoring team who had visited the home in June 2015. They did not raise any concerns about the care people were receiving. We also spoke to a GP who said they had no concerns and that staff contacted them appropriately and acted on their instructions.
The experiences of people who lived at the home were positive. People told us they felt safe living at the home, staff were helpful and the care they received was good. A relative told us they had no concerns about the way their family member was treated. They said their relative felt very comfortable in Maeres House and now regarded it as home.
People’s needs were assessed and care plans were developed to identify what care and support people required. People were supported to undertake their hobbies and interests. Daily programmes were geared around people’s special interests which had been discerned through assessment.
People were protected from abuse and felt safe at the home. Staff were knowledgeable about the risks of abuse and reporting procedures. We found there were sufficient staff available to meet people’s needs and that safe and effective recruitment practices were followed.
Some people who used the service did not have the ability to make decisions about some parts of their care and support. Staff had an understanding of the systems in place to protect people who could not make decisions and followed the legal requirements outlined in the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS).
Staff had good relationships with people who lived at the home and were attentive to their needs. Staff respected people’s privacy and dignity at all times and interacted with people in a caring, respectful and professional manner.
People’s health care needs were met and their medicines were administered appropriately. Staff supported people to attend healthcare appointments and liaised with their GP and other healthcare professionals as required to meet people’s needs. People were appropriately supported and had sufficient food and drink to maintain a healthy diet.
Staff received suitable induction and training to meet the needs of people living at the home. Staff also received supervision. This meant people were being cared for by suitably qualified, supported and trained staff.
There were systems and processes in place to monitor the quality of the service. Audits were carried out and where shortfalls were identified the provider had used the information to improve the service. This demonstrated that it was a learning organisation.