7 September 2023
During an inspection looking at part of the service
Grace Lodge Nursing Home provides accommodation and nursing and/or personal care to up to 65 people over 2 floors. At the time of our inspection, there were 23 people using the service.
People's experience of using this service and what we found
We found the service had made some improvements in the management of medicines since the last inspection, however they had not addressed all of the issues and further improvements were still required.
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.
The culture of the service was open and transparent. The registered manager and Director engaged with the inspection positively and were committed to making any necessary improvements.
The registered manager and staff had a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities. The providers systems and processes were used effectively to measure and improve the quality and safety of the service. The registered manager promoted a positive culture which was person-centred, open, and inclusive which led to good outcomes for people. There was good working partnership with others to make sure people received all the care and support they needed.
People's relatives told us staff at the home were attentive to people’s needs and communicated well any changes to people’s care needs. Staff were kind, patient and respectful towards people and dignity and independence was promoted. People and relevant others were involved in decisions about the care provided. Staff members told us they enjoyed working at Grace Lodge; Lodge; they felt appreciated and well supported by the registered manager and provider.
People had care plans in place which were person centred and accompanying risk assessments which enabled staff to care for them safely.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection and update.
The last rating for this service was Inadequate (published 17 March 2023).
The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found the provider remained in breach of regulations.
This service has been in Special Measures since [17 March 2023]. During this inspection the provider demonstrated that improvements have been made. The service is no longer rated as inadequate overall or in any of the key questions. Therefore, this service is no longer in Special Measures.
Why we inspected
We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the key questions safe, effective, and well-led which contain those requirements.
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. The overall rating for the service has changed from Inadequate to Requires improvement. This is based on the findings at this inspection.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Grace Lodge Care Home on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
Enforcement and Recommendations
At this inspection we found a breach of regulation 12 of The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. The breach related to the failure to ensure medicines were managed safely.
You can see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of this full report.
Full information about CQC's regulatory response to the more serious concerns found during inspections is added to reports after any representations and appeals have been concluded.
Follow up
We will work alongside the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety and liaise with the local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.