Frethey House

Updated 4 March 2022

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of CQC’s response to care homes with outbreaks of COVID-19, we are conducting reviews to ensure that the Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) practice is safe and that services are compliant with IPC measures. This was a targeted inspection looking at the IPC practices the provider has in place. We also asked the provider about any staffing pressures the service was experiencing and whether this was having an impact on the service.

This inspection took place on 10 February 2022 and was unannounced.

Updated 4 March 2022

About the service

Frethey House is a nursing home providing personal and nursing care to people aged 65 and over. At the time of the inspection there were 23 people living at the home, which is registered for up to 43 people. The service cares for older people with nursing needs, living with dementia and mental health needs. The accommodation is arranged over two floors with two units on each floor. The downstairs units are called Hawthorn and Bramble. The two upstairs units are Willow and Rowan, which are accessed via separate staircases.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People, relatives and staff all reported improvements since the last inspection. People and relatives said, “Things are getting better,” “[The registered manager} has got the team settled and the atmosphere had improved.” Staff said, “Things have improved a lot, such as staffing and team morale” and “We are able to give people time and attention.”

People received a safe service because staffing and skill levels had improved, and sickness levels had fallen. This meant people received care from regular staff they had got to know and trust. People’s risk assessments and care plans provided staff with more detailed, up to date information about how to safely care for each person.

Improvements to the environment had been made and staff were more aware of health and safety in the home. Staff had a good understanding of signs of abuse and felt confident any safeguarding concerns reported were listened to and responded to.

We were assured the service were following safe infection prevention and control procedures to keep people safe. The service had ongoing monitoring arrangements to ensure all aspects of infection control followed best practice guidance.

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 received effective care and consistent support from experienced staff with the right skills to meet their needs. Staff monitored people's health and wellbeing and worked with other professionals to make sure people received the treatment they required. Improvements in standards of care had been made.

People and relatives consistently reported staff treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect. Care plans and risk assessments were more detailed, personalised and up to date about people’s care needs and any preferences.

Staff felt better supported and reported improved communication, team working and staff morale. Where mistakes were made, staff were supported to learn lessons and improve practice through further training and support.

Improved quality assurance and monitoring systems were being used effectively to make continuous improvements. Senior managers visited the service regularly to carry out additional checks, offer support and ensure improvements were achieved. All five breaches of regulations found at the previous inspection had been addressed.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection: Requires improvement. (Report published September 2020). At this inspection the rating has improved to Good.

Why we inspected

This was a focused inspection to check whether improvements had been made since we last visited. We reviewed the Safe, Effective, Caring and Well-led domains only. Our report is based on the findings in those areas at this inspection. The ratings from the previous comprehensive inspection for the Responsive key questions were not looked at on this occasion.

Follow up: We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.