Archived: OSJCT Stratford Court

Updated 17 March 2016

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 to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

This inspection took place on 10 February 2016 and was unannounced.

This was a focused inspection and was carried out in response to a number of concerns we had received from members of the public and relatives of people who use the service. The service is due to close in April 2016 and we were not planning to complete a full inspection of the service before it closed. However, in response to the concerns we received, we completed this focused inspection, to assess the areas of concern that had been raised. Because we have not assessed all areas of the service, we have not produced a quality rating for this service.

The inspection was completed by one inspector. Before the inspection we reviewed previous inspection reports and all other information we had received about the service, including notifications. Notifications are information about specific important events the service is legally required to send to us. We reviewed the Provider Information Record (PIR). The PIR was information given to us by the provider.

During the visit we spoke with the manager, area operations manager, head of care, six people who use the service, six care and housekeeping staff. 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 not talk with us. We spent time observing the way staff interacted with people who use the service and looked at the records relating to support and decision making for five people. We also looked at records about the management of the service.

Updated 17 March 2016

OSJCT Stratford Court provides accommodation and personal care for up to 48 older people. At the time of our inspection 45 people were living at Stratford Court. The home was last inspected in November 2013 and was found to be meeting all of the standards assessed.

This inspection took place on 10 February 2016 and was unannounced.

OSJCT Stratford Court is due to close in April 2016 and CQC have received an application to cancel their registration. People who use the service and the majority of the staff team are moving to a new, purpose built service, being opened by the provider. This was a focused inspection and was carried out in response to a number of concerns we had received from members of the public and relatives of people who use the service. We were not planning to complete a full inspection of the service before it closed. However, in response to the concerns we received, we completed this focused inspection, to assess the areas of concern that had been raised.

There was a registered manager at the service, although they were not in day to day charge and CQC had received an application to cancel their registration. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run. A new manager had been appointed to the home and was available on the day of the inspection.

The home was not cleaned effectively. We saw some areas where further cleaning was needed to ensure people were cared for in a clean and pleasant environment. Examples included one person’s walking frame which had dried food stains on the legs, arm chairs with dried food debris on the arms and seat, lap tables with dried food debris on the side and underneath and hand rails that were sticky to touch.

Medicines held by the home were securely stored and people were supported to take the medicines they had been prescribed. However, more information about support for people to take 'as required' medicines was needed. This would help to manage the risks of people receiving too much or too little of their ‘as required’ medicines and give staff clear information about the support people needed.

Staffing levels in the home had not been sufficient. Most people who use the service told us there had been problems with the number of staff available. Comments included, “It (staffing) is a big problem. They’re very busy, we need more staff. It takes a long time for staff to come when we need help” and “Staffing is a problem”. One person was more positive about staff availability, telling us, “Staff come quickly when I call them and they are always walking past my room”. However, the provider had taken action to address the concerns and recruit more staff.

Risks people faced were assessed and action taken to manage the risks. Details of the support people needed in relation to managing risks were set out in their care plans. The risk assessments contained detailed information about people’s needs and support to manage identified risks.

We found a breach of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. You can see what action we told the provider to take at the back of the full version of this report.