Eastside House

Updated 5 January 2023

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

1 inspector, and 1 specialist advisor and 1 Expert by Experience carried out the inspection. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

Eastside House 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.

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

Inspection activity started on 20 November 2022 and ended on 8 December 2022. We visited the location’s service on 24 November 2022.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection and sought feedback from the local authority. 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 6 people who used the service. We spoke with 2 provider representatives, two assistant managers, a member of the care staff and the chef. We also spoke with a visiting family member.

We undertook observations of people receiving care to help us understand their experiences, especially for those people who could not talk with us.

We reviewed a range of records. This included seven people's care records and two staff files in relation to recruitment, training and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including quality assurance, training records, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

We asked for additional information related to managing people’s mental health needs, minutes of staff and residents’ meetings, infection control documentation and other documents related to the management of the service.

We received feedback from 4 relatives, and 2 health and social care professionals.

Updated 5 January 2023

About the service

Eastside House is a residential care home providing accommodation and personal care for up to 16 people aged 65 and over, some of whom may have dementia. At the time of the inspection there were 14 people living in the home.

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

At this inspection we found there were improvements made to the management of the service and progress had been made in a number of key areas, including medicines management and care planning.

We found there was still need for improvement in setting out and advising staff on how to manage risks, and how to support people with behaviours that can challenge. Reviewing of accidents and incidents needed to take place, to ensure lessons were learnt by the service, and all that all health professionals were involved in a timely way.

We also found there had been insufficient progress in completing mental capacity assessments for people. Due to this, we could not be fully confident people were always supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives, however, relatives gave us examples where people’s rights had been upheld.

Management of the service had improved, but we found some staff were working excessively long hours, and audits were not robust enough to identify the issues we found at this inspection.

However, people and their relatives praised the service and people told us the service had improved since the last inspection. Staff were kind and caring, and they understood the needs and preferences of people. The staff team provided continuity of care for people.

Medicines management was safe, as was recruitment. People and their relatives told us the management team was responsive.

People had access to a balanced and healthy diet, although the menu was limited. Some people told us they would like more flexibility for getting snacks and drinks.

People and their relatives told us that they were happy with the management of the service and that they were kept up to date about their relative’s care.

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 21 September 2021 and there were breaches of regulation. We also issued a Warning Notice related to governance of the service.

The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve.

Why we inspected

We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service to check whether the service had made improvements and addressed the issues set out in the Warning Notice.

At this inspection we found some improvements had been made but the provider remained in breach of two regulations, related to risk and governance of the service. We have also made a recommendation in relation to menu choices and activities.

The service remains rated requires improvement. This service has been rated requires improvement for the last three consecutive inspections.

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.

Follow up

In response to the breach identified regarding good governance, regulation 17, we will be writing to the provider asking them to provide an action plan in response to the issues identified and to provide time specific updates on the progress of actions taken. We will work with the service and discuss with them how they will make changes to ensure they improve their rating to at least good. We will work with the 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.