Prospect House

Updated 4 February 2021

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 Care Act 2014.

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

This inspection was carried out by one inspector and specialist advisor mental health nurse who had experience in proving nursing care to people living with dementia.

Prospect House is a care home. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and personal care. Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at on this inspection.

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

We announced the inspection visit the day before it took place. This was because we needed to give the registered manager time to prepare in advance of our visit due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We visited the service on 14 January 2021.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed the information we received about the service since the last inspection. We requested feedback from the local authority, the local Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and local infection, prevention and control (IPC) team. We also looked at the reviews about the service on care home review web sites. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with four people who used the service about their experiences of the care provided. We also spoke with the registered manager, nominated individual, deputy manager, two clinical service managers, five care assistants, the chef, a laundry assistant and a cleaner. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.

We looked around the premises, observed the meal time experience and the administration of medicines and reviewed a variety of records. These included several people’s care records, medication records, two staff recruitment records, cleaning records, accidents and incidents and records relating to the governance of the service.

After the inspection visit

Following the site visit we continued to seek assurances from the provider and requested range of documentation to be sent to us to be reviewed. These included policies and procedures, staff training planner, resident and staff meeting minutes, newsletters, satisfaction survey results, audit documentation and action plans.

Updated 4 February 2021

Prospect House is a residential care home that provides personal and nursing care to up to 65 people in one adapted building. At the time of the inspection 46 people were living at the service most of whom had age related conditions. People living with dementia were accommodated in an area of the service called the Butterfly unit.

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

Since the last inspection significant improvements in the service people received, had been made and sustained.

People felt safe and were protected from the risk of harm. The relative of one person who is living with dementia told us, "My relative thinks the world of the staff. I can tell by the way my relative looks at them, I just know my relative is safe." The management of medicines had improved, and people received their medicines on time. Risks to people's health and safety had been assessed and mitigated. There were sufficient numbers of safely recruited staff on duty to meet people's assessed needs.

People were protected from the risk of infection. The environment was clean and hygienic, staff wore personal protective equipment (PPE) appropriately and followed national infection prevention and control guidance.

People's needs had been robustly assessed before they moved into the service. Improvements had been made to make sure all these needs were planned for. Records relating to people's care were up to date and accurate. People's healthcare needs were assessed, and referrals were made to relevant health care professionals when needed. People's dietary needs and preferences were catered for and people enjoyed the homemade food on offer.

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.

Improvements had been made to make sure the systems in place to monitor the quality of the service were effective. People and their relatives were happy with the management of the service and the care people received. They had the opportunity to give their views in a number of ways and felt listened to. One relative told us they felt Prospect House was a "Wonderful place" and that they "Couldn't be happier." The management team were open and transparent when things went wrong and were open to suggestions to improve the quality of the service people receive.

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 requires improvement (published 15 October 2019) and there were multiple breaches of regulation. 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 improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

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 coronavirus and other infection outbreaks effectively.

We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service on 28 August 2019 at which breaches of legal requirements were found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve safe care and treatment and good governance.

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.

The ratings from the previous comprehensive inspection for those key questions not looked at on this occasion were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection. The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good. 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 Prospect House on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

We will return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.