Hilton Lodge

Updated 24 September 2022

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. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector who visited the service, and an Expert-by-Experience, who made calls to relatives. 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

Hilton Lodge is a 'care home'. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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.

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

Notice of inspection

The inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection:

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. The provider was not asked to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to this inspection. A PIR is information providers send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. However, we used our own intelligence gathered over the last 18 months to inform the inspection visit.

During the inspection

We spoke with three people who lived there and a visiting relative. We talked with the registered manager and two members of staff.

We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records, two staff recruitment files and building maintenance documentation, including that relating to fire-fighting equipment.

We reviewed how accidents and incidents were recorded and acted on. We checked stocks against records for medicines, and we viewed supervision records.

After the inspection

We sought clarification from the management team in other areas including training documentation. We also received feedback from five family members and three health and social care professionals.

Updated 24 September 2022

About the service

Hilton Lodge is a care home providing accommodation and personal care for up to 13 people with a disability. Most of the people were over 65. At the time of the inspection there were 12 people permanently living there and one person who was in the process of having their placement made permanent. The service was based in converted houses in a residential street.

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

People and their relatives told us the staff were kind, caring and they felt safe at the service. We found the service provided a homely atmosphere and staff treated people with dignity and respect.

Care plans were person centred and risk assessments were in place. Staff understood people’s needs and preferences.

Staff were safely recruited and there were enough staff to meet people’s needs. Staff received suitable training and supervision to be effective in their role.

Medicines were stored and managed safely.

There were systems in place to ensure people were protected from infection through effective cleaning processes and the safe storage of food.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff support them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

The registered manager was very involved in the management of the service, and worked there most days. Their day to day involvement ensured the quality of care was good, and audits took place in key areas to evidence this. COVID-19 had impacted on the service, but the registered manager was updating outstanding documents at the time of the inspection, and any areas identified at the time of the inspection as being outstanding were immediately addressed.

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 last inspected in November 2018 and rated good (published 28 December 2018).

Why we inspected

We carried out a focused inspection of this service on 17 August 2022.

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Safe, Effective and Well Led.

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

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.