Background to this inspection
Updated
9 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:
One inspector and one assistant inspector.
Service and service type:
Brackendale House is a care home that provides care and support to people with mental healthcare needs. 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 was an unannounced inspection visit completed 10 April 2019.
What we did:
Before inspection: We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. This included details about incidents the provider must notify us about. We liaised with third party stakeholders.
During the inspection: We spoke with six people who used the service. We observed care and support provided in communal areas. We spoke with the registered manager, provider, one senior carer, one member of care staff and the maintenance person. We looked at seven people’s care and support records in detail and four people’s medicine records. We looked at staff files as well as records relating to the management of the service, recruitment, policies, training and systems for monitoring quality. We requested provision of additional information that was sent to us after the inspection visit within agreed timescales.
Updated
9 May 2019
About the service: Brackendale House is a care home providing personal to 14 people with mental health support needs. At the time of the inspection 13 people were receiving care and support.
People’s experience of using this service:
People living at Brackendale House participated in activities and involvement in the local community. Staff showed kindness and compassion and placed value on their caring role and involvement in people’s lives. People were offered a choice of meals and staff closely monitored people assessed to be at risk of poor food and fluid intake.
The service had completed end of life care training to ensure people received high standards of care and support and were involved in the planning of their care at that stage of their life. The service had good working relationships with the local GP practice and mental healthcare professionals.
The service worked in partnership with people and encouraged feedback on the care provided. We received mainly positive feedback from people about the staff and service received. Staff told us they enjoyed working at Brackendale House and spoke highly of the support and encouragement provided by the registered manager.
People had their care and support needs met by sufficient numbers of suitably trained staff. The care environment was clean and comfortable throughout. Some decoration was tired, but the service had a rolling refurbishment plan in place. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; policies and systems in the service supported this practice.
The service had good governance arrangements in place and completed internal quality checks and audits. Findings from these were regularly reviewed by the registered manager and provider.
Rating at last inspection: Brackendale House was rated overall Requires Improvement, with Requires Improvement for effective, responsive and well-led, and good for the remaining two key questions. The report was published June 2018.
The service was in breach of regulations 9 and 17 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. The service sent us an action plan to provide assurances on how the service would address the breaches. This action plan was reviewed as part of this inspection.
Why we inspected: This was a scheduled, comprehensive inspection, completed in line with our inspection schedule for services rated as Requires Improvement.
Follow up: We will continue to monitor this service and will reinspect in line with our schedule for those services rated as Good.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk