The Sands Care Home

Updated 22 June 2022

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 completed by one inspector and two Experts 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 Sands 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. The Sands 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 service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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.

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

Notice of inspection

The inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. 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 eight people living in the home and the relatives of ten people. We met with the registered manager and the deputy manager. We spoke with seven staff. We looked at a range of records which included; medicine records for 25 people and care records for five people. We looked at the recruitment records for three staff and the training records for all staff. We reviewed a range of documents relating to the maintenance and safety of the premises and the audit and governance records.

Updated 22 June 2022

About the service

The Sands Care Home in Morecambe provides accommodation and personal care, including nursing for up to 97 people. Accommodation is provided in single ensuite rooms over four floors. There are spacious communal areas on each floor. At the time of inspection there were 97 people living in the home.

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

People told us they felt safe living in the home and praised the kindness and quality of the staff team. There were enough staff to help keep people safe; and people told us their call bells were always answered promptly. The provider maintained safe staffing levels. Some people living in the home and some staff felt they would benefit from more staff at times but did not feel unsafe. Staff had received training and new staff had a robust induction programme which both helped to ensure staff had the skills necessary to keep people safe and well.

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.

People living in the home, their relatives and staff felt confident the home was well managed. The registered manager ensured the quality of care and care records had been maintained, which helped ensure people received high-quality, person-centred care. The provider had ensured the premises and equipment had been maintained to a good standard. The registered manager had good oversight of the service and maintained a daily presence in each of the units. Staff told us the registered manager was approachable and supportive.

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 December 2021) and there were breaches of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do, and by when to improve.

Why we inspected

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 and Well-led which contain those requirements. For those key questions not inspected, we reviewed the information we held about the service. No areas of concern were identified in the other key questions. Ratings from previous comprehensive inspections 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 The Sands Care Home on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

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.

Follow up

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