Archived: Canterbury House Care Home

Canterbury House Care Home is a residential care home providing accommodation for up to 66 people requiring personal care to in one large purpose-built building. The service provides support to older people who may be living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 35 people using the service.

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

People were not always safe living at the service. Potential risks to people’s health and welfare had not been consistently assessed and there was not always guidance for staff to reduce the risks.

Accidents and incidents had been recorded and analysed but action taken had not been effective in mitigating risks and trying to significantly reduce them from happening again. Checks and audits had been completed but there was little evidence that learning from previous incidents had been used to improve the quality of the service or reduce risks.

There was not always enough staff to support people and keep them safe. Staff worked in a task-orientated way and consequently people were not always treated with dignity and respect. There were not always positive outcomes for people with more complex needs.

People were supported by staff, who did not have the skills and training to support them safely. Staff were supporting people living with health conditions such as diabetes and requiring catheter care. Some staff had no previous social care experience and they had not received appropriate training to support people with health conditions.

People were supported to eat a balanced diet, however, staff had not always acted when people had not drunk enough fluid to meet their target fluid intake. People received their medicines as prescribed, records of administration were not always accurate.

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 registered manager understood their responsibility to report concerns of discrimination or abuse to the local safeguarding authority. People were referred to healthcare professionals when their needs changed. People’s end of life wishes had been recorded in their care plan.

People had been involved in activities and celebrations, people told us they had enjoyed the Easter and Mother’s Day activities. The provider had a complaints procedure in place, this had been followed when complaints were received. People and relatives were invited to regular meetings where they were able to make suggestions about the service.

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

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 23 June 2021 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about the management of risks around people’s eating and drinking. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.

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.

We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the safe, effective, caring and well led sections of this full report. You can see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of this full report.

Enforcement

We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the exceptional circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection. We will continue to monitor the service and will take further action if needed.

We have identified breaches in relation to safe care and treatment, staffing and well-led at this inspection.

Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

Follow up

We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.