Serenita

Updated 2 November 2018

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked 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 11 October 2018 and was unannounced, it was a comprehensive inspection. The inspection team consisted of two inspectors 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.

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 improvements they plan to make.

We reviewed information we held about the service. This included the action plan which the provider had sent to us following the last inspection, feedback received about the service and statutory notifications that the provider had sent us. A statutory notification provides information about important events which the provider is required to send us by law.

During the inspection, we spoke with 10 people using the service. We made direct observations at meal times. We spoke with five staff in total. They included two care staff, the chef, the deputy manager and the manager.

We looked at the care records for six people, the recruitment records for eight care staff and staff training information. We looked at a range of documents including meeting minutes, complaints, audits and records related to how the provider monitored the quality of service. Prior to the inspection, we spoke with the local authority contracts and compliance officer and were given a copy of their report.

Updated 2 November 2018

Serenita is a residential care home that offers housing and personal support for up to 34 adults who have a range of needs including mental health problems such as Korsakoff’s syndrome and the effects of alcohol related brain damage. The support at Serenita is based on a three step enablement programme supporting people to return to the community.

The service has a large open plan lounge, dining room and games area, an accessible garden and bedrooms all of which are en-suite. At the time of our inspection 28 people were using the service. At our last inspection we rated the service good. At this inspection we found the service remained good. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

Systems were in place to safeguard people from abuse and staff knew the procedure and guidance to follow if something went wrong. Risks relating to people's care were identified and staff knew how to manage these risks to help keep people safe but still encourage people's independence. Staff spoke to people about the risks they faced to help people understand how to keep safe.

People's medicines were managed safely by staff. There was enough staff to care for people and they received adequate training, induction and supervision to support them to do their jobs. The recruitment process ensured staff were suitable to work with people.

People's needs and preferences were assessed by the service before they began receiving care. People had a choice of food and helped plan their weekly menu. Staff encouraged people to make healthy choices when they needed to. Staff promoted the healthcare needs of people and worked well with healthcare professionals, they took on board recommendations to help make sure individual health needs were met.

Specialist dietary needs such as those associated with diabetes were provided for. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible. The policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People were encouraged to be as independent as they could be. Staff treated people with dignity and respect. People were supported to be involved in hobbies and activities that interested them. This included access to the community and involvement with clubs and outside social events when people wanted to.

People's care plans were sufficiently detailed to inform staff about people's needs and to guide staff in caring for them. The service had a complaints procedure which addressed any complaints within the agreed timescale. Systems were in place to make sure managers and staff learnt from events such as accidents, incidents and complaints. This reduced the risk to people and helped the service continually improve. The service had a range of audits in place to assess, monitor and drive improvement.