Background to this inspection
Updated
17 December 2020
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.
As part of CQC’s response to care homes with outbreaks of coronavirus, we are conducting reviews to ensure that the Infection Prevention and Control practice was safe, and the service was compliant with IPC measures. This was a targeted inspection looking at the IPC practices the provider has in place.
This inspection took place on 24 November 2020 and was unannounced.
Updated
17 December 2020
Acacia Care Centre 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.
We inspected on 10 April 2018 and the visit was unannounced. This meant the staff and the provider did not know we would be visiting.
Acacia Care Centre provides nursing, personal care and accommodation for up to 58 older people. On the day of our inspection there were 41 people living at the service. At the last inspection in January 2016, the service was rated ‘Good’. At this inspection, we found the evidence continued to support the rating of ‘Good’ and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and on-going monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.
The service had a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are 'registered persons'. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
People told us they felt safe living at Acacia Care Centre. Relatives we spoke with agreed they were safe living there. The staff team understood their responsibilities for keeping people safe. They were aware of what to look out for and what to do, if they suspected that someone was at risk of harm.
People's needs had been identified and the risks associated with their care and support had been assessed and reviewed. There were arrangements in place to make sure action was taken and lessons learned when things went wrong to improve safety across the service.
Appropriate checks had been carried out when new members of staff had been employed to check they were suitable to work at the service. Staff members had received an appropriate induction into the service and relevant training had been provided. This enabled them to properly support the people using the service.
People told us there were enough staff members to meet their current needs. They told us the staff team were kind and caring and they were treated in a respectful manner. They told us their care and support was provided in a way they preferred and their consent was always obtained. The staff team supported people to make decisions about their day to day care and support. They were aware of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) ensuring people's human rights were protected.
Plans of care had been developed and the staff team knew the needs of the people they were supporting well. People received their medicines as prescribed and there were appropriate systems in place to audit the management of medicines.
People were provided with a clean and comfortable place to live and there were appropriate spaces to enable people to either spend time with others, or on their own. The staff team had received training in the prevention and control of infection and the necessary protective personal equipment was available.
People were supported to maintain good health. They were supported to access relevant healthcare services such as doctors and community nurses when needed and they received on-going healthcare support. Nutritional assessments had been carried out and people were supported to maintain a healthy, balanced diet. For people who had been assessed to be at risk of not getting the food and drink they needed to keep them well, appropriate records were kept so this could be monitored.
A formal complaints process was displayed and people knew who to talk to if they had a concern of any kind. Complaints received by the registered manager had been appropriately managed and resolved.
People were appropriately supported at the end of their life. They were supported to develop an end of life plan of care and the staff team had received training to enable them to provide the care and support people wanted and wished for.
Relatives and friends were encouraged to visit and they told us that they were made welcome at all times by the staff team.
Staff meetings and meetings for the people using the service and their relatives had been held. These provided people with the opportunity to have a say and to be involved in how the service was run. Surveys had also been used to gather people's feedback.
The registered manager and management team monitored the service being provided to make sure people received the safe care and support they required. The staff team felt supported by the registered manager and the management team. They felt able to speak with them if they had an issue or concern of any kind and they felt listened too.
Further information is in the detailed findings below.