Hawkinge House

Updated 2 April 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 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

The inspection was carried out by one 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

Hawkinge House 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 service did not have a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means the provider is legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

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 things the provider is legally required to notify us about, such as serious injuries. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. 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. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with six people who were living in the service and fourteen relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with nine members of staff including the manager, nurses, care workers and support staff. We spoke with two professionals who work with the service. 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 eight people’s care records and multiple medication records. A variety of records relating to the management of the service were reviewed, such as training data, audits and compliance reports.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate the evidence found. We looked at more documents, such as meeting notes, audits and management quality reports.

Updated 2 April 2022

About the service

Hawkinge House is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care for up to 146 people. The service also provides care for other service user groups, such as supported living and personal care. People were living with a range of complex health needs, including brain injuries, diabetes and those living with dementia. Hawkinge House also provided short term support for people after discharge from hospital and before either returning home or moving to longer term accommodation.

At the time of our inspection there were 92 people using the service. Some people rented their accommodation and had tenancy agreements with Hawkinge House Limited. These people could choose which organisation provided their care, but they all chose to receive their care from staff employed by Hawkinge House. Everyone living at the service was entitled to the same level of 24-hour care, therefore we included everyone living in the service in our inspection. The accommodation was arranged across three floors, with lift access to the upper floors.

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

At the last inspection people and their relatives told us that communication was poor. For example, emails were not always responded to and it was difficult to get to talk to the right person on the phone. Some relatives told us they hadn’t been informed about changes in their relative’s care or condition. At this inspection, relatives acknowledged there had been some improvement in communication, but this could still be improved. The service had a home improvement plan in place and the management team were working through this.

There were enough staff deployed to provide safe care for people and the provider was in the process of recruiting additional staff to support and improve social engagement and offer a wider range of activities for people.

People told us they felt safe living in the service and liked living there. Relatives told us their loved ones were safe living in Hawkinge House. One relative said, “We couldn’t ask for anything better. Staff are polite, friendly, caring and always smiling.”

Risks to people were managed. The provider had appropriate infection control measures in place and medicines were managed safely. Risk assessments and care plans had been recently reviewed and were up to date. Staff knew the people they were supporting well and had read the care plans. Staff had attended additional training in person centred care.

The provider had quality assurance processes in place and had introduced additional audit activity to monitor the quality of the service provided. A recent survey had been sent to people and relatives, but results had not been received or analysed at the time of our inspection.

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.

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 26 January 2022) and there were two breaches of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would 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

We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service on 23 November 2021. Two 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 person centred care 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, responsive 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 remained requires improvement. 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 Hawkinge House 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.

We undertook this inspection at the same time as CQC inspected a range of urgent and emergency care services in Kent and Medway. To understand the experience of social care providers and people who use social care services, we asked a range of questions in relation to accessing urgent and emergency care. The responses we received have been used to inform and support system wide feedback.

Follow up

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