Whitchurch Lodge

Updated 19 July 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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by 1 inspector and an Expert by Experience who made calls to family members. 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

Whitchurch Lodge is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Whitchurch Lodge is a care home without nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

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 CQC 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 23 June 2023 and ended on 26 June 2023. We visited the location’s service on both dates.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 4 people using the service, 10 family members, the registered manager, deputy manager, managing director, 4 staff and 2 kitchen staff. We reviewed a range of records which related to people’s individual care and the running of the service. This included 3 peoples care files, 3 staff files and medicine administration records and protocols. We also looked at a variety of records relating to the management and quality assurance of the service including policies and procedures and a range of audits.

Updated 19 July 2023

About the service

Whitchurch Lodge is a care home registered for a maximum of 32 people. People living in the home may have health and mobility issues associated with old age, physical disabilities or sensory Impairment. The home is located close to shops and transport links. At the time of our visit, there were 31 people living in the home.

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

People were kept safe in the service by enough staff who knew them well and who had the right skills, experience and knowledge to look after them. People were protected from harm and abuse and treated with respect. There were systems in place for managing and administering people’s medication which were reviewed regularly.

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’s needs were assessed including risks to people’s health and the environment they lived in and they were monitored to ensure safety. The service was well maintained, clean and homely. Staff received training, guidance and support to do their job well.

The registered manager delivered an effective service because they worked in partnership with other health care professionals. There were up to date systems in place to monitor the quality of the service and any learning was identified and acted upon.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 09 January 2020).

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.

We undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe, effective and well-led only.

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.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Whitchurch Lodge Care Home on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

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