This inspection was carried out on 13 and 15 July 2016 and was unannounced. Rosedene Residential Care provides accommodation and personal care for up to 23 older people, some of whom may be living with dementia. The service is a large converted property. Accommodation is arranged over two floors and stair lifts are available to assist people to get to the upper floor. The service has 17 single bedrooms and one double bedroom that people could choose to share. Seven bedrooms had ensuite toilets. There were 18 people living at the service at the time of our inspection.
A registered manager was leading the service, supported by a deputy manager. The registered manager was also the registered provider for the service. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to manage the care and has the legal responsibility for meeting the requirements of the law. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
People and their relatives told us that staff were “Very caring”, “Very good”, “Very friendly” and “Very kind people”. One person told us, “I think I couldn’t have it better, it’s like being at home in a family”. Another person said, “I think the service is outstanding, they go above and beyond”. Staff treated people with dignity and respect at all times. One person told us, “They are so patient with me, I never feel like a burden.”
People were involved in all areas of the service, including planning the menus, the decoration and day trips. They told us they had the choice to continue to do domestic tasks they had done at home if they wanted to. People told us they enjoyed dusting their bedrooms, laying the tables and folding laundry. One person did the garden and other people made sure the pet cat was fed.
The registered manager supported staff to provide a good level of care and held them accountable for their practice. Staff were clear about their roles and responsibilities and were motivated to provide the support and care that each person wanted. Checks on the quality of all areas of the service had been completed to make sure they were of the standard the registered manager required. Action was taken quickly to address any shortfalls found.
People told us there were enough staff, who knew them well, to meet their needs. People’s needs had been considered when deciding how many staff were required on each shift and people told us staff responded quickly to their requests for help. Staff worked as a team to meet people’s needs.
Recruitment systems were robust. Checks had been completed to make sure staff were honest, trustworthy and reliable. Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) criminal records checks had been completed. The DBS helps employers make safer recruitment decisions and helps prevent unsuitable people from working with people who use care and support services.
Staff had completed the training and development they needed to provide safe and effective care to people and held recognised qualifications in care. Plans were in place to refresh staff skills regularly and further develop them in their role. The registered manager met regularly with staff to discuss their role and practice.
Plans were in place to keep people safe in an emergency, including plans to evacuate people from the building. Staff practiced these regularly. Staff knew the signs of possible abuse and were confident to raise concerns they had with the registered manager or the local authority safeguarding team.
People’s care was planned and reviewed with them to keep them safe and help them be as independent as possible. Possible risks to people had been identified and action had been agreed with people to keep them safe, while supporting them to be independent. One person told us, “The staff only help me out only when I need it.”
Assessments of people’s needs had been completed to identify any changes. Detailed guidance was provided to staff about how to meet people’s needs as soon as they began to use the service. People’s care plans had been reviewed and changed when people’s preferences changed. People were supported to have regular health checks such as eye tests.
Accurate records were maintained about the care and support people received and about the day to day running of the service. Information was available to staff to help them provide safe and consistent care to people.
Staff and people planned the activities on offer at the service together, these included quizzes games and beauty treatments. People told us they had enough to do every day and enjoyed the day trips and outings provided.
People received the medicines they needed to keep them safe and well. Action was taken to identify changes in people’s health, including regular health checks. People planned menus with staff and were offered a balanced diet. People told us there was a wide variety of food on offer. Staff were taking part in a Hydration Project being run by Thanet Clinical Commissioning Group. They had increased the amount and variety of drinks offered to people each day.
The Care Quality Commission is required by law to monitor the operation of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) which applies to care homes. Arrangements were in place to apply to the supervisory body for a DoLS authorisation when people who lacked capacity to consent were restricted. People were supported to go out often and could move around the service and grounds freely. Staff followed the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and supported people to make choices in all areas of their life.
Systems were in place to manage complaints received. People and their representatives were confident to raise concerns and complaints they had about the service. They told us that any concerns were addressed quickly to their satisfaction and did not occur again.
People, their relatives and visiting professionals were asked for their views of the service regularly. People had commented that the service was ‘Excellent’. Staff had regular opportunities to share their experiences of the service and told us the management team supported them to try new ideas they had.