Rookwood Residential Home

Rookwood Residential Home is a residential care home providing personal care to 22 people aged 65 and over at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to 25 people.

The home is a large detached property spread over two floors with a large well-maintained garden and patio. The home provides care and support to some people living with dementia.

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

People were cared for by staff who knew how to keep them safe and protect them from avoidable harm. There were enough staff available to meet people’s needs promptly. People received their medicines safely. Incidents and accidents were investigated, and actions taken to prevent a reoccurrence. Infection control procedures were followed by staff.

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 were supported to eat and drink well and were provided with healthy choices. People were supported by staff who received regular training to meet their needs. Health needs were acted upon and referrals were made promptly to other services.

People received kind and compassionate care. Comments from people included, “I’m as happy as I’ll be. Staff are very kind. They always greet me as if I’m an old friend” and “I can’t fault it here. They are all so caring and helpful.” People’s independence was promoted by staff. People were treated with respect and dignity and supported to make decisions about their care.

People received personalised care that was tailored to meet their individual needs, preferences and choices. Care plans were detailed and guided staff about people's needs and how to meet them. People’s concerns and complaints were listened to and used to improve the service they received. People received compassionate support at the end of their lives.

The manager was well regarded and had a clear vision for the service which was understood by the staff. One person said, “She’s very nice, precise and correct. She knows what she’s doing.”

There were effective quality assurance systems in place that were used to drive service improvements.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 28 June 2017)

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

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

Rookwood Residential Home is registered to provide residential care for up to 25 older persons. On the day of our inspection there were twenty four people using the service with a range of support needs, including people living with dementia. The home is a large detached property spread over two floors with a large well maintained garden and patio.

At the last inspection on 14 May 2015, the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.

People and relatives told us they felt the service was safe. One person told us “I feel very safe and well looked after. I am very secure here”. People remained protected from the risk of abuse because staff understood how to identify and report it.

The provider had arrangements in place for the safe ordering, administration, storage and disposal of medicines. People were supported to get their medicine safely when they needed it. People were supported to maintain good health and had access to health care services.

Staff considered peoples capacity using the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) as guidance. People’s capacity to make decisions had been assessed. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. The provider was meeting the requirements of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS).

People and their relatives felt staff were skilled to meet the needs of people and provide effective care. One person told us “They are so good at what they do and they do know what they are doing”. Another person said “I am treated very well, they do look after me”.

People remained encouraged to express their views and had completed surveys. Feedback received showed people were satisfied overall, and felt staff were friendly and helpful. People and relatives also said they felt listened to and any concerns or issues they raised were addressed. Although the service had not received any complaints since the last inspection, we were told any minor issue was dealt with straight away. People told us they have no need to complain but would know how to if they needed to.

Staff supported people to eat and drink and they were given time to eat at their own pace. People’s nutritional needs were met and people reported that they had a good choice of food and drink. One person told us us “The food is delightful and delicious, always has been”

Staff felt fully supported by management to undertake their roles. Staff were given training updates, supervision and development opportunities. Staff spoke positively about training and supervisions they received from the management and provider and commented on how they found they could ask questions freely.

The home’s atmosphere remained to be a happy one with a homely feel where people were supported to live the lives they wanted. Everyone we spoke with spoke highly of the caring and respectful attitude of a consistent staff team which we observed throughout the inspection. Comments from people included “The staff are all lovely, just lovely” and “The staff are all so kind and caring ,they really couldn’t do anymore for me here”.

People’s individual needs continued to be assessed and care plans were developed to identify what care and support they required. People were consulted about their care to ensure wishes and preferences were met. Staff worked with other healthcare professionals to obtain specialist advice about people’s care and treatment.

Quality assurance audits completed by the registered manager and provider were embedded to ensure a good level of quality was maintained. We saw audit activity which included medication, care planning and infection control.

People, staff and relatives found the management team approachable and professional. One person told us “There is always plenty of staff on duty, the manager is lovely, they are always popping in”. A relative told us “The Manager has been very supportive in getting my relative settled, it’s early days yet but she’s been great, and I know I could go to her if I have any concerns”.

Further information is in the detailed findings below:

They also said that the manager listened to their concerns and they felt safe and supported. People told us that staff understood the needs of the people who used the service and provided appropriate care and support. One relative said "staff know what they are doing, we are very impressed with them'. We observed that staff were responsive when people asked for assistance

People we spoke to enjoyed living at the home, they told us that they were involved in the planning of their care and could make choices about how they spent their day. Relatives told us that their relatives were 'treated with dignity.'

People's care was planned to meet their individual needs, risk assessments were in place and regularly reviewed so that any risks identified were managed and reduced. Relatives told us that the health of their family member had improved since moving into the home.

Staff were appropriately trained and knowledgeable about safeguarding and the types of abuse that can occur. People felt safe and trusted the staff.

Staff had training that was relevant to the needs of people living at the service. Training and ongoing development was discussed at supervision with the manager.

Rookwood Residential Home had systems in place to monitor the quality of service provided. Regular audits and reviews enabled the service to review practices. In 2012 the annual survey showed that 81% of people rated staff's attitude and standard of both personal and general care as excellent and the remaining 19% rated the service as good.