Archived: Beechcroft Care Home

Updated 9 September 2015

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, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 2 July 2015 and was unannounced. Two inspectors undertook the inspection.

Before the inspection, the provider completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and any improvements they plan to make. We checked the information that we held about the service and the service provider. This included statutory notifications sent to us by the registered manager about incidents and events that had occurred at the service. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send to us by law. We used all this information to decide which areas to focus on during our inspection.

During the inspection, we observed care and spoke with people, relatives and staff. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI) while people had their lunch. SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us.

We spoke with nine people using the service, one relative and one volunteer. We spoke with a regional manager, the registered manager, two registered nurses, six care assistants and the administration officer. In addition, we spoke with a podiatrist and an older people’s continuing care assessor who were visiting people at the service.

We looked at records including eight care records, five staff files, 10 medication administration record (MAR) sheets, staff training plans, staff duty rotas, complaints, contract monitoring reports and other records relating to the management of the service.

Updated 9 September 2015

Beechcroft Care Home provides personal and nursing care and accommodation for up to 26 people. The service is arranged on two floors with a lift for access. People have use of a garden.

The last inspection of Beechcroft Care Home took place on 1 August 2014. The service met all the standards we inspected at that time. This unannounced inspection took place on 2 July 2015. At the time of this inspection 22 people were using the service.

The service has a registered manager who has been in post since 2013. 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, their relatives and healthcare professionals told us the service was safe. Staff knew how to identify the different kinds of abuse that could happen in the service. They understood their responsibility to report any concerns and take action to protect people from harm. Staff had identified individual risks to people and followed clear guidance about how to support them safely. The registered manager made sure there were enough staff on duty to meet people’s care and support needs. Staff supported people to receive their medicines safely as prescribed.

Staff had the skills and knowledge to meet people’s needs. People were supported by regular staff who knew them well. People’s needs were thoroughly assessed and their support was reviewed regularly. People and their relatives were involved in planning people’s care and support.

People received care which took into account their choices and preferences. Staff encouraged people to be as independent as possible. Staff ensured people, relatives and friends were made welcome at the service.

People told us staff listened to them and respected their privacy. Staff had complied with the law in relation to the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) when people lacked mental capacity.

Staff supported people to follow their individual hobbies and interests. People told us they felt confident in raising concerns and complaints with the registered manager. She had thoroughly investigated complaints and incidents.

People, staff and some professionals told us the registered manager led the service effectively. Staff said she made regular checks on the quality of the service and motivated them to improve people’s experience of the service.