Archived: Vera James House

Updated 31 May 2019

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 Care Act 2014.

Inspection team:

This inspection was carried out by one inspector and an assistant inspector.

Service and service type:

Vera James 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.

Vera James House accommodates up to 41 people in one adapted building.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. 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.

Notice of inspection:

This inspection was unannounced

What we did:

Before our inspection we looked at all the information we held about the service including notifications. A notification is information about events that the registered persons are required, by law, to tell us about. We used this information to assist with planning the inspection. We also asked the provider to complete a Provider Information Return before our visit. Providers are required to send us this key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections.

We asked for feedback from the commissioners of people’s care, representatives from the local authority, Healthwatch Cambridge and Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service.

During our inspection visits on 15 and 17 April 2019, we spoke with three people and three visitors. We also spoke with the registered manager, the deputy manager, six care staff, two housekeeping staff, and the cook. We looked at four people’s care records. We also looked at other files in relation to the management of the service. These included three staff recruitment and training records, complaints and compliments records, and records relating to the systems for monitoring the quality of the service.

Updated 31 May 2019

About the service:

Vera James House is a residential care home that was providing personal care to 32 older people at the time of this inspection.

People’s experience of using this service:

People we met and spoke with were happy with the care home and the staff that provided their care. A visitor told us that the home was, “Overall really good.”

People felt safe living at the home because staff knew what they were doing, they had been trained and cared for people in the way people wanted. Risks in the home were assessed and reduced as much as possible. There were enough staff, and the registered manager also spoke with people regularly. Key recruitment checks were obtained before new staff started work.

People received their medicines and staff knew how these should be given. Medicine records were completed accurately and with enough detail. Staff supported people with meals and drinks. They used protective equipment, such as gloves and aprons. Staff followed advice from health care professionals and made sure they asked people’s consent before caring for them.

People liked the staff that cared for them. Staff were kind and caring, they involved people in their care and made sure people’s privacy was respected. Staff worked well together, they understood the home’s aim to deliver high quality care, which helped people to continue to live as independently as possible.

Staff kept care records up to date and included national guidance if relevant. Complaints were dealt with and resolved quickly.

Systems to monitor how well the home was running were carried out well. Where concerns were identified, the registered manager followed this up to make sure action was taken to rectify the issue. Changes were made where issues had occurred elsewhere, so that the risk of a similar incident occurring again was reduced. People were asked their view of the home and action was taken to change any areas they were not happy with.

Rating at last inspection: Requires Improvement (last report published 25 April 2018)

Why we inspected:

This was a planned inspection based on the rating at the last inspection.

Follow up:

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as scheduled in our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received, we may inspect sooner.

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