Shire House Care Home

Updated 22 February 2023

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. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

Shire House Care Home is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Shire House Care Home is a care home without nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

Inspection activity started on 6 February 2023 and ended on 13 February 2023. We visited the location’s service on 6 February 2023.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 6 people who use the service and 3 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with and received feedback from 9 members of staff including the registered manager, senior carers, care assistants, domestic and the cook. We received written feedback from a health and social care professional who works with the home.

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 reviewed a range of records. This included 3 people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at 3 staff files in relation to recruitment. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

Updated 22 February 2023

About the service

Shire House Care Home is a residential care home. The home is registered to accommodate up to 22 older people in one adapted building. Nursing care is not provided by staff in the home. This type of care is provided by the community nursing service. At the time of this inspection there were 19 people living in the home.

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

Since our last inspection the provider had used a care consultant to help identify areas where risk management and oversight could be improved. They had taken appropriate action to ensure people were kept safe and quality maintained. The registered manager understood the importance of taking a pro-active approach to risk.

There were sufficient staff to meet people’s needs. The home used a dependency tool to set staffing levels accordingly. People and relatives said there were always enough staff and they responded in good time when they needed assistance.

People told us they felt safe living at the home. Their relatives agreed. One person said, “I absolutely feel safe.”

People received their medicines on time and as prescribed. The home liaised with health professionals to ensure people’s medicines were regularly reviewed to help ensure they were still benefitting from taking them.

The home was visibly clean throughout and free from malodours. We were assured with infection prevention and control practices.

Accidents and incidents were reported and recorded appropriately. Accidents and incidents were analysed to identify the cause, any themes and what could be done to prevent a recurrence.

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 home had a friendly and supportive culture. People, relatives and professionals felt the home was well-led. There was praise for the registered manager and management team. The registered manager told us they feel supported by the provider.

The registered manager and senior staff had developed and maintained good working relationships with a variety of external professionals in health and social care.

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 21 November 2017).

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.

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.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Shire House on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.