We carried out a review of the data available to us about St Vincents Retirement Home on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about St Vincents Retirement Home, you can give feedback on this service.
St Vincents Retirement Home is a ‘care home’ registered to provide accommodation and personal care for up to 25 people in one adapted building. At the time of the inspection 18 people were living at the home.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People were happy living at St Vincents Retirement Home and spoke very positively about the care they received.
Recruitment practices were effective and there were sufficient numbers of staff available to meet people's needs in a safe and unhurried way. People were protected from avoidable harm and individual, environmental and infection control risks were managed appropriately.
People received their prescribed medicines as required. There were safe arrangements in place for obtaining, storing and disposing of medicines.
People's care plans and risk assessments contained detailed information about them and their care and support needs, to help staff deliver care that was individual to each person.
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.
People were supported to access appropriate healthcare services when required. Health and social care professionals were confident in the staff’s abilities to manage people’s health needs. Staff had received appropriate training and support to enable them to carry out their role safely. They received regular supervision to help develop their skills and support them in their role.
People’s needs were met in a personalised way. Staff knew the people they supported well and had a good understanding of their needs. People were supported to partake in a range of activities centred around their particular interests.
The service had a positive person-centred culture. Both people and staff told us the management team were approachable. The service worked in partnership with other agencies to aid joined up, person centred care provision.
Effective and robust quality assurance systems had been developed and implemented to continually assess, monitor and improve the quality of care people received.
The management team was open, approachable and supportive. Everyone was confident they would take actions to address any concerns promptly.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection and update
The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 26 March 2020) and there were multiple breaches of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.
The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.
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.
Not all individual and environmental risks were managed appropriately. Most windows had not been fitted with window opening restrictors. Although there were regular checks on the fire detection equipment there had not been a comprehensive fire risk assessment completed by a suitably qualified professional. Some individual risks posed to people had also not been fully assessed. Where we identified additional risk assessments and management plans were required the management team acted to ensure these were completed.
People's care plans contained individual information about them and their care and support needs, to help staff deliver care that was individual to each person. The management team reviewed the
care and support provided to people to make sure it continued to meet their needs. However, systems had not always ensured that prompt action was taken when people’s needs changed.
The management team (provider, nominated individual and deputy manager) carried out regular checks on the quality and safety of the service. However, these had not fully identified the areas requiring improvement we found.
Appropriate recruitment procedures were in place to help ensure only suitable staff were employed. However, these had not always been followed and some references from previous employers had not been sought.
There were enough staff to support people’s needs. Staff had received appropriate training and support to enable them to carry out their role safely. They received regular supervision to help develop their skills and support them in their role.
People were supported to take their medicines safely and as prescribed. They were able to access health and social care professionals if needed, received enough to eat and drink and were happy with the food provided.
The environment was warm and homely. We observed positive communication between staff, people and their relatives. People and their relatives all gave us positive feedback about the home and told us that staff were very kind and caring.
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 management team had identified a need to undertake formal MCA assessments which had shown a need to apply for DoLS for some people. They were in the process of doing these at the time of the inspection.
Staff showed an understanding of equality and diversity. People were treated with dignity, and their privacy was respected. Activities had been developed in line with people's wishes and there were varied and interesting options to promote people's health and well-being.
People and their relatives said the management team were open, approachable and supportive. Staff were very positive about the management team and told us they were very supportive and approachable. The management team understood their regulatory responsibilities.
You can see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of this full report.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
This service was registered with us on 19/03/2019 and this is the first inspection.
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the date the service was registered.
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.