Archived: St Helens Hall and Lodge

Updated 21 May 2015

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 planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on the 4 November 2014 and was unannounced. A second announced visit took place on the 6 November 2014.

The inspection team on the 4 November 2014 consisted of two social care inspectors and an expert by experience. An expert by experience is a person who has personal or professional experience of using this type of service. In addition, a specialist professional advisor (SPA) with knowledge of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty safeguards (DoLS) joined the inspection team. The visit on the 6 November 2014 was carried out by one social care inspector.

We spent time observing the support and interactions people received whilst in communal areas. 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 spoke with and spent time with 26 people living at the home and two of their visiting relatives. In addition we spoke with the registered manager, the deputy manager and seven members of staff.

We looked at areas throughout the building and the immediate outside grounds. We spent time looking at records relating to people’s care needs and the records of five people in detail. We also looked at the records relating to the management of the home which included duty rotas; policies and procedures in place.

We asked the provider to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

Before our inspection we reviewed all the information we held about the service. This included any notifications received from the registered manager, safeguarding referrals, complaints about the service and any other information from members of the public. We contacted the local authority intelligence and outcomes unit who told us that they had no immediate concerns regarding the service. We also contacted the local Healthwatch team. Healthwatch is a new independent consumer champion created to gather and represent the views of the public. They told us that they had no recent information regarding this service.

Updated 21 May 2015

We inspected this service on the 4 November 2014. The visit was unannounced and this meant that the provider did not know that we were coming. A further announced visit was made to the service on 6 November 2014.

St Helens Hall and Lodge provides residential care for older people with mental health care needs. The home has 2 units, The Lodge which can accommodate 56 people on 2 floors and the Hall which can accommodate 38 people on 2 floors.

During our previous inspection of the home in October 2013 we found that the service was meeting the regulations we assessed.

The registered manager had been in post since January 2012 and registered with the Care Quality Commission from June 2012. 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 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People told us that they felt safe living at the home. Staff knew how to keep people safe from abuse and were aware of when and how to report any concerns they may have in relation to safeguarding people from harm. However, we found that people were not always safe because

the management of medicines required improvement.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is required by law to monitor the operation of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and to report on what we find. Policies and procedures were in place to promote people’s rights and the provider’s responsibilities in relation to the MCA.

We looked at care planning records and found that detailed information was available for the staff team as how they were to offer care and support. Staff demonstrated a good awareness of the needs and wishes of the people they supported. We saw staff supporting people in a manner that respected their privacy and maintained their dignity

There interior of the building was created to offer a stimulating environment for people living with dementia. The design of the building gave people the opportunity to access a number of communal areas.

Staff told us that they felt supported in their role and were confident in what they did. We saw that staff had the opportunity to attend training for their role on a regular basis.

Quality assurance systems were in place to monitor the service provided to people. This showed that the provider carried out regular checks on the quality and management at the home to help them understand and improve the service that people received.