Westlands Care Home

Updated 18 January 2024

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.

Inspection team

The inspection team consisted of 1 inspector and 1 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

Westlands 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. Westlands Care Home is a care home without nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

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.

During the inspection

We spoke with 6 people who used the service, 2 relatives and 1 visitor about their experience of the care provided.

We spoke with 10 members of staff including the nominated individual, the registered manager, the deputy manager, senior care staff, care staff, housekeeping and the chef. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.

We reviewed a range of records. This included 3 people's care plans, medicine records and daily care records. We looked at 6 staff files in relation to recruitment. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

Updated 18 January 2024

About the service

Westlands Care Home is a residential care home providing accommodation and personal care to up to 28 people. The service provides support to people living with dementia, physical disabilities, mental health conditions and sensory impairments. At the time of our inspection there were 24 people using the service.

People’s experience of the service and what we found:

The provider’s systems and processes to assess, monitor and improve the quality and safety of the service needed further development.

We found areas for improvement in relation to the adaptation and decoration of the home in supporting people living with memory or cognitive impairments and to support them to orientate to time and place, such as no personalised signage on bedroom doors.

There was a positive and open culture at the service. People spoke positively about the experiences of care they received. Further development was needed to ensure people and their relatives had the opportunity to provide feedback for improvements to be identified and actioned.

People told us they felt safe. Risks to people's care and safety was assessed and regularly reviewed to ensure measures were in place to mitigate such risks where possible and keep people safe. Staff demonstrated they knew how to raise safeguarding concerns.

There was enough staff to meet people’s needs in a safe and timely way. Staff followed safe infection prevention and control procedures to prevent the spread of infection. The administration of medicines was managed in a safe way and people received their medicines as prescribed.

Staff had been provided with training to ensure they had the relevant skills and knowledge to carry out their roles effectively. People were supported with their meals and drinks and staff contacted healthcare professionals when concerned about people’s health and wellbeing.

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

The last rating for this service was good (published 13 December 2019).

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about staff recruitment and training. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe, effective and well-led only.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.

We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the well-led section of this full report.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘All inspection reports and timeline’ link for Westlands Care Home on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow Up

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