Background to this inspection
Updated
27 September 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. 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.
Inspection team
The inspection was carried out by two inspectors 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
The Friendly Inn is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during 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
The inspection took place on 11 September 2019 and was unannounced.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. This included feedback from people’s relatives and notifications the provider is required by law to send us about events that happen within the service such as serious injuries. We sought feedback from the local authorities who work with the service. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report.
During the inspection
We spoke with nine people who lived at the home and 11 people’s relatives about their experiences of the care provided. We spoke with the deputy manager, the provider, the director, a deputy manager from another of the provider’s services, the maintenance person, the cook, a management support consultant, the administrator, two senior care workers, one care assistant, one laundry assistant and one housekeeper.
We reviewed six people's care records and six people’s medicine records. We looked at a sample of records relating to the management of the service including quality audits, action plans, training data and people's feedback. We also reviewed two staff files to check staff had been recruited safely.
After the inspection
The management team shared further information with us to demonstrate their compliance with the regulations.
Updated
27 September 2019
About the service
The Friendly Inn provides accommodation and personal care for up to 30 people. There were 24 people living in the home on the day of our inspection visit some of whom were living with dementia.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
The provider had appointed a new management team since our last inspection and changes had been made to drive forward improvement. A service improvement plan was under constant review and further improvements were planned to take place. A range of new audits and checks had been introduced which demonstrated progress had been made. However, further time was needed to ensure improvements made were sustained.
The management of risk in the home had improved and staff had a better understanding of how to mitigate risks. Immediate action was taken to address the risks we identified in relation to fire safety.
Lessons had been learnt when things had gone wrong. Learning from accidents and incidents had been shared with staff. The management team understood their legal responsibilities to protect people and had shared important information with the local authority and CQC when required.
Staff were recruited safely and there were enough staff on duty to meet people's needs. Staff had received training and support, so they were more confident in their abilities to provide safe and effective care. Staff understood their responsibilities to protect people from abuse or discrimination.
People felt safe and had increased confidence in the ability of staff to deliver effective care. Feedback from people and relatives was gathered by the management team and was used to support continuous improvement.
Relationships with other healthcare professionals had improved which helped support people’s health and wellbeing. Mealtime experiences had improved. The home was clean and infection prevention measures were effective.
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 management of people’s personal information had improved. Staff were attentive and responsive to people’s needs. Care was provided in a dignified way. People’s right to privacy was respected and their independence was promoted.
People were happy with the social activities available to occupy their time. People enjoyed the food and their nutritional needs were met. People received their medicines as prescribed and had access healthcare professionals when needed.
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 inadequate (published 10 June 2019) and there were multiple breaches of regulation. The provider sent us 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.
Enforcement
Since the last inspection we recognised that the provider had failed to notify us of incidents. This was a breach of regulation and we issued a fixed penalty notice. The provider accepted the fixed penalty and paid this in full.
This service has been in Special Measures since June 2019. During this inspection the provider demonstrated improvements have been made. The service is no longer rated as inadequate overall or in any of the key questions. Therefore, this service is no longer in Special Measures.
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.