H M T Care - 48 Albany Drive

Updated 1 May 2018

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, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

The inspection took place on 13 February 2018 and was unannounced. The inspection was carried out by one inspector. This was because this is a small service and past experience has shown that additional inspection staff may be too intrusive for people.

We used information the provider sent to us in the Provider Information Return (PIR). This is information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give us some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We reviewed the information in the PIR along with other information we held about the service. We looked at previous reports and notifications received by the Care Quality Commission. Notifications are information we receive when a significant event happens, like a death or a serious injury.

We looked around all areas of the service. We met all the people living at the service and also spoke with three relatives. We spoke with five members of staff, the registered manager and the provider. Some people were not able to explain their experiences of living at the service because of their health conditions so we used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could no talk with us.

We observed how staff engaged and spoke with people. We looked at how people were supported with their daily routines and activities and assessed if people’s needs were being met. We reviewed two care plans. We looked at a range of other records including three staff files, safety checks and records about how the quality of the service was managed.

Updated 1 May 2018

We inspected HMT Care – 48 Albany Drive on 13 February 2018 and the inspection was unannounced.

HMT Care – 48 Albany Drive is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

H M T Care - 48 Albany Drive provides a specialist service for people diagnosed with neuro-disabilities, specifically Huntington's Disease. There were seven people living at the service at the time of inspection. The service is a large Victorian detached house in a residential area of Herne Bay. The service was set out over three floors. On the first two floors there were communal areas and people's bedrooms. Each person had their own bedroom which contained their own personal belongings and possessions that were important to them. On the third floor was the company office. There was a passenger lift for people who could not use the stairs.

At the last comprehensive inspection in February 2017 the overall rating for the service was Requires Improvement. One breach of regulation of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) 2014 was identified. The provider failed to deploy enough staff to meet people’s needs.

Following the last inspection we asked the provider to complete an action plan to show what they would do and by when to improve the key question Safe to at least Good.

At this inspection improvements had been made and the breach in regulation met. No further breaches were identified.

A registered manager worked at the service each day. A registered manager is a person who has registered with CQC 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.

People told us and indicated they felt safe living at the service. People were protected from the risks of abuse, discrimination and avoidable harm by staff who were trained and knowledgeable in their roles. Accidents and incidents were recorded and reviewed and action was taken to refer people to the relevant health care professionals when needed. People’s medicines were administered safely and given on time.

People and their relatives said there were enough staff to support them when they needed anything. Staff had been recruited safely and were coached and mentored by the provider and registered manager. The provider and registered manager worked closely with the Huntington’s Disease Association to keep up to date with best practice.

The building and grounds were clean and well maintained. People’s rooms were personalised with their own pictures, photographs and ornaments to help them feel at home. People had access to communal areas and the garden.

People were supported to eat healthily. Staff liaised with health care professionals, such as dieticians and speech and language therapists and followed any advice given to help them stay as healthy as possible.

People were supported to have maximum control of their lives and were supported in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. People’s physical and mental health needs and their social and cultural preferences were assessed and reviewed. People and their relatives and had been involved in planning and making decisions about their care.

Staff supported people to move into and out of the service, working with local authorities and health care professionals to make sure that any move was co-ordinated well. People had developed strong relationships with the provider, registered manager and staff. Staff were kind, patient and caring and people and their relatives had no complaints about the quality of service delivered. People’s privacy was respected and their dignity was promoted. People’s end of life preferences were discussed and recorded to ensure staff could follow their wishes. People took part in a range of activities both inside and outside of the service.

People, their relatives and the staff felt the service was well-led and that the registered manager was approachable and accessible. There was an open and inclusive culture and people were encouraged to suggest any improvements that could be made. Regular checks and audits were completed to monitor the quality of service and any shortfalls were actioned.

All services that provide health and social care to people are required to inform CQC of events that happen, such as a serious accident, so CQC can check that appropriate action was taken to prevent people from harm. The registered manager notified CQC and the local authority in a timely manner.