Braeside Care Home

Updated 14 July 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 undertaken by 1 inspector, a medicines inspector and an Expert by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

Braeside 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. Braeside Care Home is a care home with 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 not a registered manager in post. A new manager had been in post for 3 weeks and was intending to apply to register.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. This included notifications the service is required to submit regarding any significant events happening at the service. We sought feedback from the local authority and Healthwatch. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. 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 7 people living in the home and 3 relatives. We also spoke with 11 staff including care staff, the maintenance operative, clinical lead, cook, the manager, deputy manager, support manager and the nominated individual. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider. We had a tour of the building with the manager. We reviewed a range of records, including care records, records relating to medicines, staff recruitment, training and supervision, building maintenance, cleaning and equipment checks, accident and incidents and safeguarding logs and policies and procedures for infection control. Also, a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including audits and policies and procedures were reviewed.

We continued to review evidence and seek further clarification during and following the inspection, we were sent further information for consideration.

Updated 14 July 2023

About the service

Braeside Care Home is a 'care home'. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection. The home can accommodate up to 36 people. At the time of this inspection there were 18 people using the service.

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

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 did not always support this practice. We could not be assured the provider was meeting the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA). Records at the home relating to some Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) authorisations had not been updated. Staff were not able to tell us which people who lived at the home had DoLS in place or which people had conditions placed on DoLS authorisations. Medicines were not always managed safely. Further improvement was needed to systems for auditing, assessing, monitoring and improving the quality and safety of the service.

Staff had received training and knew how to identify and report safeguarding concerns. Risks to people were identified and well managed. The required health and safety checks had been completed. There were sufficient staff deployed and safe systems of staff recruitment were in place. There were systems in place to minimise the risks associated with COVID-19 and other infectious diseases.

People’s needs were assessed and person-centred care plans and risk assessments had been developed. Plans were in place to further develop and improve these records. People told us they were happy with the care they received. A person said, “Staff are good, helpful when I need them. I’ve no complaints, I’m quite happy with things.” Staff received the induction, training and support they needed to carry out their roles effectively. People’s nutritional needs were being met, people were positive about the food. Peoples were supported to access a range of health care professionals. The building and decoration were in need of some updating. There was a detailed improvement plan in place for the updating and redecoration of parts of the building.

Everyone was very positive about recent changes in management and provider oversight. Staff told us communication with managers and the provider had improved. Throughout the inspection staff were observed to be patient, caring and responsive. They knew people really well. People who lived at the home told us they could raise any concerns and were listened to.

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 19 April 2019).

Why we inspected

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.

We received concerns in relation to the management of medicines and people’s nursing care needs, recruitment checks, health and safety and governance systems. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe, effective and well-led only.

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 good to requires improvement based on the findings of this inspection.

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

Enforcement and recommendations

We have identified breaches in relation to consent, medicines management, and governance.

Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this full report.

Follow up

We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.