Archived: St Michael's Rest Home

Updated 19 April 2016

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.’

This inspection took place on the 4 and 16 February 2016 and was unannounced. The inspection was carried out by four inspectors.

We looked at information we hold about the home including previous reports, notifications, complaints and any safeguarding concerns. A notification is information about important events which the home is required to send us by law.

As part of the inspection we spoke with 20 of the people living in the home, five relatives, two visitors, four staff, the cook, housekeeping/maintenance staff, the deputy manager, registered manager, the provider and a visiting healthcare professional. We observed staff supporting people and reviewed documents; we looked at four care plans, medication records, three staff files, training information and some policies and procedures in relation to the running of the home.

Some people living in the home were unable to verbally share with us their experience of life at the home, because they were living with dementia. We started to do a short observational focused inspection (SOFI), which involves our observation of staff interaction with a small group of people to assess if their needs are met. However, we found there was a lot of activity in the home so we spent our time observing the interaction between people and staff, and watched how people were cared for by staff in communal areas.

Updated 19 April 2016

St Michael’s Rest Home is located in a residential area of Bexhill on Sea, close to the seafront with parking on site and on the road nearby. The building has been extended, with large communal rooms including a lounge and dining room, and a lift enables people to access all parts of the home. There is a secure large garden to the rear and this can be accessed by people using mobility aids or wheelchairs.

The home provides support and care for up to 30 people living with dementia. There were 27 people living in the home during the inspection. Some people had complex needs and required support with all aspects of their lives, including moving around the home safely due to their physical frailty or medical conditions. Other people needed prompting or some support with personal care and eating.

A registered manager was responsible for the day to day management of the home. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission 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.

This inspection took place on the 4 and 16 February 2016 and was unannounced.

The CQC is required by law to monitor the operation of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) which applies to care homes. The management and staff had attended training in the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards, but they were not up to date with current guidance to ensure people were protected. Additional training was being arranged and advice was being sought from healthcare professionals.

Staff were trained in the safe administration of medicines. Staff followed relevant policies, they gave out medicines safely and signed the administration records after they had been taken. However, additional advice was needed to ensure medicines given without a person’s consent followed current guidelines.

People were assessed before they moved into the home to ensure staff could meet their needs, and care plans, including risk assessments to ensure their safety, were developed from this information. The registered manager reviewed these to ensure people and their relatives were involved in decisions about the support and care provided, and that they agreed with the information recorded in their care plans.

Systems were in place to ensure people were protected and support was provided safely. This included safeguarding training, staff had a good understanding of abuse and how to raise concerns if they had any.

Relatives and staff said the management were very approachable, and were involved in decisions about how the service developed with ongoing discussion on a day by day basis and during meetings. In addition feedback was sought from people, their relatives, healthcare professionals and other visitors to the home, through satisfaction questionnaires.

People told us the food was very good. Staff asked people what they wanted to eat, choices were available for each meal, and people enjoyed the food provided. People decided what they wanted to do, some joined in activities, while others chose to sit quietly in their room or communal areas.

People had access to health professionals as and when they required it. The visits were recorded in the care plans with details of any changes to support provided as guidance for staff to follow when planning care.

A complaints procedure was in place. This was displayed on the notice board near the entrance to the building, and given to people, and relatives, when they moved into the home. Relatives said they were aware of the procedures and who to complain to, but had not needed to use them.