Background to this inspection
Updated
3 September 2021
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.
As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.
Inspection team
The inspection was carried out by two inspectors on the first day and a medicines inspector on the second day.
Service and service type
Gracewell of Weymouth is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a 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 did not have 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. A general manager was overseeing the home and we were informed that a new manager had been appointed and was due to start work at the home next month.
Notice of inspection
This inspection was unannounced.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed information we had received from and about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We received feedback from two professionals who visited the home.
The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report.
We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with 11 people who lived at the home and two visiting relatives. Some people at the home were unable to fully share their views with us because they were very frail or living with dementia. We therefore spent time observing care practices in communal areas and talking with staff. We spoke with 12 members of staff which included the provider’s regional director and quality business partner.
We also reviewed a range of records relating to people’s individual care and the running of the home. These included seven care records, two staff files, records of staff training and supervision, a sample of audits and minutes of meetings.
After the inspection
We asked the provider to send some records to us electronically. All records requested were supplied in a timely way.
Updated
3 September 2021
About the service
Gracewell of Weymouth is a care home which is registered to provide personal and nursing care to up to 70 people. The home is arranged over three floors and specialises in the care of older people including people who are living with dementia.
At the time of the inspection there were 49 people living at the home.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People lived in a home which had not been consistently well led in the past few months. This had led to some audits not being carried out and some identified shortfalls not being addressed. This meant the systems in place to monitor the quality of people’s care and safety had not been fully implemented to drive improvements. At the time of the inspection the provider was taking action to improve the management of the home.
Standards of cleanliness throughout the home were excellent.
People felt safe and were comfortable and relaxed with staff who supported them. Throughout the inspection we saw kind and caring interactions between people and staff.
Risk assessments were in place to support people’s physical health. However, risk assessments regarding people’s emotional well-being had not always been updated to make sure they took account of people’s wishes. This meant risk assessments were not always carried out in a way that enabled people to safely take part in activities of their choosing or promote their independence.
People received their medicines safely from staff who had received specific training to carry out the task. All medicines errors or discrepancies were fully investigated.
People were cared for by staff who had received training to care for people safely. Staff were safely recruited which helped to minimise the risks of abuse to people.
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 happy with the food provided at the home. The provider was planning changes to ensure that everyone had a choice of meals.
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 the service was good (Report published December 2019)
A further targeted inspection was carried out in November 2020 to follow up on concerns raised with the Care Quality Commission. The rating was not changed as a result of this inspection and remained good.
Why we inspected
The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about medicines administration, several safeguarding incidents, staffing and the management of the home. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.
We identified concerns in relation to the management of medicines, safeguarding incidents, staffing and management. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe, effective and well-led only.
We reviewed the information we held about the service. No areas of concern were identified in the other key questions. We therefore did not inspect them. Ratings from previous comprehensive inspections for those key questions were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection.
The overall rating for the service has changed from good to requires improvement. This is based on the findings at this inspection.
We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the safe and well led sections of this full report. However, we found no evidence during this inspection that people were at immediate risk of harm from these concerns. The provider was taking action to address shortfalls identified.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Gracewell of Weymouth on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
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.