Archived: St Mary's Care Home

Updated 14 October 2017

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 comprehensive inspection took place on 3 August 2017 and was unannounced, which meant that the staff and provider did not know we would be visiting.

The inspection was carried out by one adult social care inspector and an expert by experience. An expert by experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Before the inspection we reviewed all the information we held about the service, this included notifications submitted to CQC by the provider. Notifications are changes, events or incidents the provider is legally obliged to send us within required timescales. We contacted the commissioners of the service and other professionals to gain their views of the service provided. We also spoke with a professional who was visiting the service on the day of the inspection.

We had not asked the provider to complete a provider information return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

During the inspection we reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records including care planning documentation and medicines records. We also looked at staff files, including recruitment, supervision, appraisal and training records, records relating to the management of the service and a wide variety of policies and procedures.

We spoke with staff, which included the manager, a nurse, the chef, two care assistants and a senior care assistant. We spoke with 14 people who used the service and 11 relatives. We spent time observing staff interactions with people throughout the inspection.

Updated 14 October 2017

St Mary’s Care Home provides care and accommodation to a maximum number of 40 people. The service supports people who have a learning disability, mental health conditions, physical disability, older people and older people living with a dementia. At the time of the inspection there were 39 people who used the service.

St Mary’s Care Home is an established service, which had been previously registered under a different provider. This is a first inspection of a newly registered service.

The service had a registered manager. 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 a legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

Staff understood the procedure they needed to follow if they suspected abuse might be taking place. Risks to people were identified and plans were put in place to help manage the risk and minimise them occurring. Medicines were managed safely with an effective system in place. Staff competencies, around administering medication, were regularly checked. Appropriate checks of the building and maintenance systems were undertaken to ensure health and safety was maintained.

People and relatives told us there were enough staff on duty to meet the needs of people who used the service. We found that safe recruitment and selection procedures were in place and appropriate checks had been undertaken before staff began work. This included obtaining references from previous employers to show staff employed were safe to work with people.

People were supported by a team of staff who were knowledgeable about people’s likes, dislikes and preferences. A training plan was in place and the manager monitored this to make sure all staff were up to date with their training.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. People were able to choose meals of their choice and staff supported people to maintain their health and attend routine health care appointments.

Care plans detailed people’s needs and preferences. Care plans were reviewed on a regular basis to ensure they contained up to date information that was meeting people’s care needs. People and relatives were actively involved in care planning and decision making. People who used the service had access to a range of activities and leisure opportunities. The service had a clear process for handling complaints.

Staff told us they enjoyed working at the service and felt supported by the manager. Quality assurance processes were in place and regularly carried out by the manager and provider, to monitor and improve the quality of the service. The service worked with various health and social care agencies and sought professional advice to ensure individual needs were being met.